Oxford Playhouse, Wed 23rd - Sat 26th January 2008

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Lita Doolan January 25, 2008

Whilst Sheridan sets his masterpiece in late 18th Century Bath, this Oxford University Student Company directed by Chanya Button has brought the action of this comedy into the roaring 20’s. Whilst post-war decadence allows the abundance of malapropisms to be fully appreciated, the fight-to-the-death importance of a man’s valour does not translate so easily to the 20th Century. However the bursts of Noel Coward’s musical output that accompany each scene change succeed in convincing the audience the paper trail of letters being passed between lovers is a frivolity soon to be halted by recession from the impending Wall Street Crash.

Sheridan lampoons naïve notions of love in a plot that twists and turns. Sweet Lydia Languish (Charlotte Bayley) is enamoured with the notion of falling for a poor soldier, Ensign Beverly, against the wishes of her Aunt, Mrs Malaprop. When Ensign Beverly turns out to be the false identity of the wealthy Captain Jack Absolute, Lydia refuses his hand, much to the chagrin of her Aunt and Jack’s father. Both guardians hope for an aristocratic match for their young charges. Meanwhile, Lydia’s dithering cousin Julia (Emma Pearce) has lost her heart to Jack’s friend Faulkland who arrives in Bath and is peeved Julia has been enjoying life without him. Faulkland (Tom Palmer) overreacts with hilarious effect and decides to question Julia’s emotional integrity.

The period costumes are part of Pippa Needs’ designs with a divine Charleston dress worn by central character Lydia. Rivalry for luscious Lydia’s affections comes from amusing buffoon Bob Acres (Peter Clapp) and the manipulative Sir Lucius O Trigger (Shaun Passey). A duel is naturally in order to take out this rival Ensign Beverly who has stolen Lydia’s heart. As it becomes apparent Ensign Beverly does not exist, Mrs Malaprop leads the young ladies to stop the combat, being directed to the scene by trusty manservant Fag (Leo-Marcus Wan).

The youthful energy of the student company keeps the dynamic pace of the plot alive, always convincing the audience of the vibrant social scene the play is written for. This show is worth watching both for the ridiculous effect gained by Natasha Kirk (Mrs Malaprop) in misusing a word and for the wisdom imparted by the same. Sheridan serves us a meaty comedy of manners full of characters that feel familiar and this makes their wise observations the more profound. Natasha Kirk’s delightfully dizzy Mrs Malaprop deserves the last word, ‘Men are all barbarians!’

Uprooting a Restoration comedy from its historical context and setting it firmly in the Bath of the 1920s was always going to be a risky move. I have to admit I expected to be unconvinced; when the curtain rose to reveal a girl in a flapper dress with a bob, my heart sank. Yet director Chanya Button has just about managed to pull it off. Whilst the music that covers the scene changes jars in its relentless ‘20s jollity, the set is beautiful in its understated elegance, and the costumes are pitch-perfect (with the notable exception of the footwear worn by Lucy, the maid). Yet it is not only the overall look of the production that is note-worthy; the acting is similarly impressive.

In fact, the entire cast is superb. Patrick Netherton as Jack shines for every second that he’s on stage (and he’s onstage a lot), but it is Matt Lacey that is most worthy of mention. Lacey plays middle-aged Sir Anthony Absolute without a trace of awkwardness: everything from his posture to his voice (particularly his voice) is utterly believable, and his moments of verbal (and physical) sparring with both Jack and Mrs Malaprop are among the funniest – and best – moments of the production. Natasha Kirk is similarly impressive as Mrs Malaprop, creating an impression of age through her dominant stage presence, and allowing the malapropisms and mispronunciations that litter her speeches to become elements of an affected persona, rather than incidental humour, which adds to the cohesion of the play as a whole.

The only problem I had with the casting was Natasha Kirk’s attractiveness; whilst it was necessary for the Mrs Malaprop in this production to have some physical charm to ensure that her flirtation with Sir Anthony was believable, she also needed to be unattractive enough for it to be laughable that any man would want to marry her. As it is, the jokes made at her expense by Sir Lucius and Sir Anthony in the final scene fall a little flat. Luckily, this almost the only instance where this was the case; the play is frequently hilarious and some lines were even lost in the continuing laughter of the audience.

It is the sheer funniness of the play that makes it so enjoyable to watch. In her ‘director’s statement’ in the programme, Button defends her decision to root the production in the ‘20s by explaining that the shadow of the coming depression lends a poignant sense of fragility to the play, yet I would argue that the audience receives the very opposite impression. The humour, like the play, is robust, physical, farcical; it arises from comic misunderstandings and deceits. The script is very self-aware, with constant in-jokes about staging and asides to the audience, and Button fully manipulates this fact. Humour is extracted from every possible situation, yet it doesn’t feel like overkill. Instead it makes for a very funny, very enjoyable and very entertaining three hours.

My main criticism of the production, other than the fact that it’s just a little too long, is that the actors weren’t always fully in control of their wordy and cumbersome speeches, some of which verged on indistinct. Both the very beginning and the very end lack the flair which characterizes the rest of the production, which is a shame as the energy is so high elsewhere. But these are only small complaints. This is a cheerful romp through the ins and outs of various love affairs. And it made me laugh out loud repeatedly. That’s the highest praise I can give to a comedy.

Emma Whipday 24 Jan 2008

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