Theatre producers please take note – this is the exemplar for a comedy. A fabulous lead (Felicity Kendal) and a cast where every member plays their character with skill and style, a sumptuous and evocative set with realistic atmospheric effects and a perfectly delivered script that is crisp, funny and as relevant today as when it was written in the 1920s.
The play, in three acts, focuses on the eccentric Bliss family (actress and novelist parents, lively and privileged grown son and daughter) who each – unbeknown to the others - invites a guest to their Home Counties house for the weekend. And everyone smokes – those were the days.
Felicity is luminous and her sparklingly passionate portrayal and deliberate dramatic overacting is perfect. The rest of the cast all have plenty to commend them and were flawless. But I have to mention the youthful stomping of Alice Orr-Ewing as Sorel, the inspired non-verbal communication of Celeste Dodwell as Jackie Clayton, the self-absorbed artist by Simon Shepherd as David Bliss and the cringingly accurate portrayal of social discomfort by Michael Simkins as Richard Greatham.
It’s like watching Downton Abbey - but with a great script. Who else could write lines like “she uses sex like a shrimping net”? And they had better flapper costumes. It’s an excellent showcase for the role of the mischievous mature woman – perhaps the template for the first ever (classy) cougar?
This delicious and hilarious play moves at a swift pace through a clever plot and is studded with regular great lines that generated a constant stream of laughter from the audience. I see so many mediocre plays and performances that it was really good to see theatre at its very best.
Book your tickets now – it runs at Richmond Theatre until Saturday 20th September and then moves on to Brighton. I really hope it goes to the West End afterwards.
http://www.atgtickets.com/shows/hay-fever/richmond-theatre/
