Noises Off, Michael Frayn, dir Lindsay Posner, Celia Imrie, Janie Dee, Johnathan Coy, Amy Nuttall, Jamie Glover, Robert Glenister, Paul Ready, Aisling Loftus, Karl Johnson, des Paul McKintosh
Priceless. Just when you think comedy couldn’t be bettered after ‘One Man Two Guvnors’ along comes ‘Noises Off’ at the Old Vic. A masterly script, played at a breakneck pace, which is truly awesome, using a play-within-a-play format where genre and structure is expertly manipulated throughout. Set over three acts, ‘Noises Off’, features Act One of the sex comedy ‘Nothing On’….produced by a second rate touring theatrical company with its stock of theatricals: young juveniles, old hacks, persistent worriers and drunks. Over time, the production disintegrates, as do the relationships between the characters, as actors play characters, who play actors and characters, who play….you get the picture…. ‘Nothing On’ - replete with sardines, banging doors and country-house setting - is ripe for exploitation, reminiscent of the slap n’ tickle, seedy comedies, at the butt-end of pier. Yet Act Two, where the action switches to backstage, objectifies the highlights of Act One while the ensuring chaos of the characters’ feelings towards each other are made more ludicrous because of the backstage etiquette for silence....Celia Imrie more than matches her two predecessors, Patricia Routledge and Patricia Hodge, Robert Glenister is in perfect pitch as the frazzled director, Lloyd Dallas. Yet overall, ‘Noises Off’ is an ensemble triumph: a seasonal treat, expertly told, expertly executed…… 
No comments:
Post a Comment