Salisbury Playhouse – until 21 October. Reviewed by Karen Millington Burnet
4****
The Salisbury Playhouse; an intimate setting for an intimate portrayal and story-line which very much appealed to an audience of a certain age; Salisbury is the right setting and the right town…indeed, I think we reduced the average age by a considerable amount, but even we “got” the jokes.
Margaret left a difficult legacy and this play brought it out in spades. Harriet Thorpe’s Margaret, full of herself and burdened with self pity, presented a powerful performance with barely a moment off stage to collect herself before the next onslaught. Richard Stirling’s writing dropped enough insights into life inside the royal family to sink a dynasty and it is little wonder he was able to craft a story line around the notion of self censorship and the threatened betrayal by so called friends and intimates. David Benson’s Billy was a strong portrayal of loyalty mixed with a world weary cynicism at the antics of their employers.
Ultimately I was left with the feeling of a family at war with itself as various royal households squabbled for the ascendancy of their all important message.
In many ways this portrayal of royal household competition reflected the tussle between the gangland tussles of the gasworks as depicted by Giles Cooper’s Tristan and Charles Daish’s John. For John it seems to have become a relief to outgrow and move on from the gangland warfare just as it seems to have been a relief for Margaret to lay to rest the ghosts of her past. In the end however, while the show closed on the never ending party-girl image of Margaret I was left feeling saddened at a life wasted by a loyal but ultimately irrelevant royal daughter and sister.
It must therefore be a mark of a strong team to deliver a genuine and heartfelt, even if ultimately, slightly comic and tragic message.
Much credit must go to the author and crew for putting together a story with great depth. However, Man of the Match must go to Harriet Thorpe for a strong and convincing portrayal. As an opening night, there is clearly room for further finesse and Salisbury is a great kick-off point before moving on to the West End. For me this was a four out of five with plenty yet to offer and characters yet to polish.