THE TRANSATLANTIC MAGAZINE
THE TRANSATLANTIC MAGAZINE
Play by Oliver Goldsmith
Orange Tree Theatre, 1 Clarence Street, Richmond, TW9 2SA until January 6, 2024
Oliver Goldsmith's classic comedy from 1773 used to be a staple of the old Repertory theater system, and indeed the national houses, but has fallen out of favor. Tom Littler, who has taken over this gem of a playhouse in South West London, has given it a sparkling revival which not only makes the case for it, but also provides the Orange Tree with a great Christmas hit.
He's moved the setting to 1934 and the time to Christmas so the house that gets mistaken for an inn is festooned with yuletide decorations. Anett Black and Neil Irish's design in this intimate, in-the-round setting is beautifully judged as is the elegant tailoring of the costumes. It's all very PG Wodehouse and the Christmas silliness, with lots of songs, adds to the joy.
Freddie Fox and Robert Mountford play Marlow and Hastings, two young blades from London lost in rural Gloucestershire. Raised in the single gender seclusion of his class, Marlow is utterly tongue tied and bashful with women of his own level but a total rake with the servant class.
When he is tricked into thinking that the home of Kate Hardcastle, the woman he has been sent by his father to woo, is an inn, he falls in love with her while she is in the guise of a barmaid. He also comically mistakes Mr Hardcastle for the inn keeper. Meanwhile, in a subplot, Hastings is wooing Constance, the visiting niece of Mrs Hardcastle, played with great aplomb by Sabrina Bartlett, whose physical agility matches her effervescent spirit.
The acting company under Littler's taut direction really nail the tone of the piece, pitching it at comic exaggeration but never falling into pantomime. This draws out the dramatic resonance of Goldsmith's play which is full of very sharp observations about class and the restrictions they impose. The dialogue sparkles like champagne throughout.
It's also interesting that Kate is such a strong character. She alone has the capacity to move between these two worlds and Tanya Reynolds, all long necked and angular, brims with confidence, giving her a sense of self-awareness lacking in the others. We first meet her in an elegant gown, which her grumpy Father permits her for part of the day, as he bemoans her 'French ways'.
David Horovitch is a delight as the kind but curmudgeonly father who “loves everything old”, but the real scene stealer is Greta Scacchi as the mother. Decked out in her russet fright wig and bright blue eyeshadow, she floats in turquoise chiffon, dreaming of town but not convincing us she'd ever really want to leave. Amazingly, Scacchi grounds her. Guy Hughes is a sly delight too as Tony Lumpkin, her bumpkin of a son, whom she dotes on and who out of mischief more than anything else sets so much of the chaos in train.
Fox is a total star though, giving a great physical performance whether it's stumbling or bumbling one minute or being a rampant lech the next, settling on sofas like a cat. He manages to fuse romantic lead and comic foil effortlessly. The whole piece is an utter joy.
