“I bear no malice to the people I abuse"
Sparkling reinterpretations of 18th century comedies have become something of
an annual treat from Jessica Swale’s Red Handed Theatre company and following
on from the delights of the Celia Imrie-starring
The Rivals, the remounting of Hannah Cowley's
The Belle's Stratagem and last year’s excellent
The Busy Body, it is now the turn of Sheridan’s
The School for Scandal to be
primped and preened in their deliciously inimitable style. So for those as yet uninitiated
to their ways, prepare for witty musical interludes and warmly embracing audience
interaction as a vivacious ensemble romp through this comedy of manners.
Led by the machinations of the vicious-tongued Lady Sneerwell – Belinda Lang in
epically glam form – Sheridan’s plot winds through a portion of the higher
echelons of London society and exposes the gossip-fuelled hypocrisy at the
heart of it. Lady Sneerwell wants others to suffer the loss of reputation she
has; Sir Peter Teazle is concerned about the flightiness of his flirtatious
younger wife; Sir Oliver Surface wants to test the mettle of his two nephews
who stand to inherit his vast fortune; and above all, everyone wants to be the
first to tell the juiciest pieces of gossip with the most salacious details.
It is these scenes which glitter the best – Michael Bryher’s Sir Benjamin
Backbite and Buffy Davis’ Mrs Candour delight in outdoing each other with the
latest tidbits and Kirsty Besterman’s Lady Teazle gives as good as she gets,
even as she sees the effect of the ridicule on her husband, a battered if not
quite elderly enough Daniel Gosling. But there’s much fun too with the errant
nephews. Harry Kerr’s ruffled and raffish Charles can’t hide his innate goodness
even at the heights of his carousing, and Tom Berish’s Joseph is just excellent
as the seductively handsome one that everyone likes, little suspecting his most
devious nature.
The production is always light-hearted and fun – a trick with a book is particularly
well played, the programme is a work of genius and Fi Russell’s costumes are a
bejewelled array of lush fabric – but there’s also a sureness to Swale’s
direction as she constantly refines and sharpens her approach. Laura
Forrest-Hay once again contributes original music rather than pastiches of pop
songs, the portrait gallery ditty and the raucous lark in the park number add
to the general feel of a delightful romp, unafraid to play it to the back of
the (admittedly intimate) Park Theatre but crucially never takes itself too
seriously.
Running time: 2 hours 20 minutes (with interval)
Booking until 7th July
Labels: Belinda Lang, Buffy Davis, Charlie Tighe, Daniel Gosling, Harry Kerr, Jessica Clark, Kirsty Besterman, Michael Bryher, Rachel Atkins, Russell Bentley, Sheridan, Timothy Speyer, Tom Berish