Where There's a Will
Liverpool Playhouse: until 4th April
How can a French farce written in 1892 burst from the stage to beguile audiences in the 21st century? The answer: a superb adaptation and delightful acting under the masterful direction of Sir Peter Hall.
This English Touring Theatre production of a Georges Feydeu work, that is rather obscure outside his homeland, manifests itself as a well-rounded ensemble piece from a strong cast.
"Le Système Ribadier" as it was originally entitled, has been very cleverly translated for modern English audiences with its Parisian context gently muted.
Nicki Frei's pacey adaptation is full of witty dialogue and only occasionally sinks to cheap one-liners, winning a lot of laughs from an appreciative Playhouse audience.
The action is set in a dazzling, though somewhat claustrophobic, belle époque apartment where the dastardly husband Ribaldier (Charles Edwards) is using hypnotism to subdue his wife Angele in order to pursue amorous adventures.
This evil scheme is upset thanks to his rival Thommereux - brilliantly played by Tony Gardner - whose efforts to win the heart of Angele are the central thread of a carefully-woven plot.
Enter a cuckolded husband in the rotund shape of the wine merchant Savient (Teddy Kempner) and three very different buffoons play off each other to great effect.
TV audiences will be familiar with Tony Gardner's understated role as the manic restaurateur in C4's Lead Balloon, but in this role he is given his head and lets rip with a real tour de force.
He had the audience enthralled with a pyrotechnic combination of manic mannerisms, really true "over-acting" and superb comic timing that is the stand-out performance of the show.
Perhaps it was because he was on stage in Liverpool that Gardner often reminded me of the late comic genius Leonard Rossiter.. or was it rather that Gardner is a comic genius in our midst. I hope it is the latter.
Sara Stewart, as the wronged wife Angele, was highly entertaining though sometimes appeared a little "too common" to be totally believable as a refined Parisian heiress, indulging in mannerisms that are more chamber-maid that madame.
Some lines were thrown away but there were very convincing appearances by Nelie Harker as the pretty maid and Jason Thorpe as her acrobatic coachman lover Gusman.
One member of the audience as we left was heard to dismiss the play as "A bit over the top..." Perhaps then it was not to everyone's taste, but in my book it was a truly memorable evening's entertainment.
Rating: 9/10
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