This is probably the hottest show in town right now and, my goodness, it is good.
However, I have to say that I wasn’t convinced at first. In fact, I found the beginning of the first scene of Act 1 pretty painful. It is a scene designed to set the scene and introduce all the characters, but Kitty Archer’s lines as Daphne Stillington were near unintelligible due to her speed of delivery; Sophie Thompson’s accent as Monica Reed flitted all over the place and the delivery of some lines was such that it was difficult to understand what was being said; and it took me a good few lines to settle into the rhythm, pace and delivery of Andrew Scott’s Garry Essendine. The saying “All the world’s a stage, And all the men and women merely players” epitomises the characterisation of Garry Essendine, and it was so over the top and unnatural that it took me a while to get used to it. Everyone else in the audience appeared to love the play from the start, however, and found it hilarious, and I was somewhat concerned that this was how the evening was going to play out, with me just finding it lukewarm.
I need not have feared, however. Halfway through Act 1 everything took off. Scott is absolutely incredible as Essendine. It feels like he is giving the performance of his life, and he plays the character for all that he is worth. It was exhausting watching him portray this self-centred, flamboyant, egotistical, maniacal man and, given that he is on stage for almost the entire play, he must be exhausted after each scene, let alone each performance. Not once did Scott falter though, and I have a feeling that he might just do a little bit of maniacal improvisation each night, as there was definitely a scene where Morris (Abdul Salis) and Liz (Indira Varma) were trying very very hard not to corpse as Garry went off on one of his tirades.
When the play first started, I found Scott’s Essendine to be completely detestable. However, by the end, although he was still awful in many respects, he was actually quite likeable, sympathetic and charming, and I found that I had quiet a soft spot for him. I don’t know the play well enough to comment on whether this is as a result of the writing, or whether it is down to Scott’s characterisation, or, more likely, both. It was, however, interesting to be taken on such a journey and have my view of a character changed so much.
Varma was absolutely brilliant as Liz - cool, calm, collected, with an iron core; all of which is an act to hide the hurt and turmoil beneath. And I loved Thompson’s no-nonsense, straight talking Monica. Everyone else was also fantastic, but Scott, Varma and Thompson are the stars of this show.
One thing, however, that really stood out for me in this production was the miscasting (or maybe mischaracterisation?) of Morris and Joe. Both characters are described by others before the audience meets them but, when they entered, I didn’t know who they were because their characterisation didn’t, to my mind, match the descriptions at all. I found this slightly jarring and distracting, and I would be interested to know if the characterisation has changed over the course of the run, or whether they have always been played this way.
The set is incredibly detailed (although how anyone can have so much seating without back and neck support is beyond me) and seems to provide ample opportunity for some improvisation, although I think that some of the more farcical scenes might be set incredibly precisely. It was actually quite interesting to see this show right after Noises Off, as various aspects of the second Act were incredibly reminiscent of Noises Off, so I suspect that that play has it roots in this one.
The Old Vic was still undergoing its refurbishment work when I saw this production and, despite the ample opportunity for this to mean an incredibly painful theatre experience, it has actually been managed really well. Although there were very long queues to get into the stalls, which delayed the house going up by at least ten minutes, the front of house staff did their best to keep them moving swiftly. And, although the only toilets are outside, again the front of house staff try to make the interval queuing process as smooth as possible, and they even provide chocolate balls! A little more direction on arrival at the theatre about various bars being open would have been nice - the massive signs direct you to the stalls entrances which don’t open until 19:00, and there is nothing directing you to the main theatre entrance and the open bars.
Overall this was an absolutely superb performance, and the experience wasn’t affected by the work that is still going on.
The run is sold out but, if you have an opportunity to acquire a ticket, grab it with both hands and don’t let go. I wish that I could see it again.