Civic Theatre – Darlington. 3 November 2015
Presented by the Bunbury Company of Players
The fabulous idea underlying this outstanding and funny production is that we are watching a rehearsal of an amateur dramatic troupe called the Bunbury Players who have been regularly performing The Importance for several decades. The rehearsal is being held in the beautiful home of Lavinia, who plays Lady Bracknell, and her husband George, who takes on the servant roles but keeps nipping out to potter about in his beloved garden or watch cricket on the TV
And the magnificent set is among the many stars of this fabulous show. At the start of Lucy Bailey’s staging, the show seems like an homage of Frayn’s great farce Noises Off, or Mischief Theatres hilarious The Play That Goes Wrong, where the company argue, props misbehave, and love affairs go wrong.
‘The Importance of Being Earnest’ is a very familiar play and has been performed in the West End and on tour many times that a new slant is warmly welcomed – Simon Brett has written the additional material for this production.
This performance does as Wilde intended: it mercilessly pokes fun at the foundations of community- the family, love and convention. It made me laugh from start to finish
Once the play or rehearsal gets going, it remains mostly faithful to the Wilde original. It follows the story of two upper class bachelors, Algernon Moncrieff (Nigel Havers) and John Worthing (Martin Jarvis), who both create alternative identities in order to pursue their intended love interests. As their plan begins to collide, the formidable Lady Bracknell (Siân Phillips) instils terror in the pair as the real story of Earnest Worthing is discovered, along with an explanation of his heritage.
With a stellar cast, none of which would see 40 again, it was a genuine joy to see 74 year old Martin Jarvis play a 29 year old and 58 year old Christine Kavanagh as 18 year old Cecily Cardew. Only Siân Phillips (who looks a good 20 years younger than her 82 years) remotely plays her own age.
This new production is a unique and irresistible take on a classic play. The excellent cast not only give great performances, but are also clearly just having a great time – and their enthusiasm is more than a little infectious. I really enjoyed the comic opportunities offered by the inventive am dram twist, and of course we can’t forget the main event, which is Oscar Wilde’s brilliant and very funny script. All in all, The Importance of Being Earnest makes for an evening of fun and laughs, and you can’t ask for more than that.
In Darlington until Saturday 7 November and on UK tour