Theatre Royal Windsor – until Saturday 19th April 2025
Reviewed by Carly Burlinge
4****
Windsor brings you Alan Bennett’s well known and loved play – The Lady in the Van, a funny yet heartfelt true story. About the unlikely and unwanted relationship, that springs up between Miss Shepherd (Nichola Mcauliffe) and Alan Bennett (Robert Duncan). Miss Shepherd is living in her van on Mr Bennetts road in Camden, but seems to be continuously moved along by many of the residents who seem to have had enough of her eccentric, irritating and unsanitary ways. Things take a different direction when Miss Shepherd is scared in the night by thugs tapping at her window and shouting abuse, causing Mr Bennett concern about how safe Miss Shepherd really is. Due to this Mr Bennett offers for Miss Shepherd to park her van in his front garden.
With many neighbours and a social worker (Sara Crowe) always popping by and with interest from others. A lady from the church then offers to buy her a new van which ends up on Bennett’s driveway supposedly on a temporary basis but she actually ends up staying there for 15 years! Mr Bennett has an ageing mother, who he regularly makes comparisons of to Miss Shepherd in a satirical and melancholy way, however despite his prickly exterior, he gradually begins to care about Miss Shepherds welfare. All the above forming a quirky yet strange friendship where over time they begin to learn more about each other; for instance Miss Shepherds ability to speak fluent French and her dislike of any music! She also becomes aware of his skills as a writer all these things filling a loneliness that they both have within their lives.
The play is narrated by Alan Bennett (Matthew Cottle) as if he is writing the story and looking back upon the past, sometimes questioning his younger self (Robert Duncan), his memories and the emotions he experienced during his encounters with Miss Shepherd.
Rather than presenting this play in the usual way with different scenes, changing scenery, costume changes and a large cast this performance was delivered in the style of the classic radio drama – set in an intimate studio, with the cast reading their parts in front of microphones and a foley artist (Michael Workman) using props to recreate sound effects and create atmosphere. By presenting the play in this way the director (Roy Marsden) gives us a nostalgic view of vintage radio dramas, whilst ensuring that the words of Alan Bennett are enhanced by the simplicity of the performance and not detracted from.
The cast used a limited number of simple props to help them to get into their characters, especially when the actor played more than one part. A pair of glasses, a hat and a tote bag were some of the props used and helped the audience to distinguish between the characters with ease. The foley artist used a wide range of props to recreate sound effects, ranging from traditional props such as a piano and door knocker, to the more obscure rear of a van, including doors! These sound effects really brought the performance to life as if you were hearing the drama over the radio waves.
I really enjoyed this production in its simplicity with its nostalgic feel. That shows the versatility available within the theatre. A classic play with serious, comedic and satirical moments that drew the audience in. Well worth a watch.