“I really love the script and wit which was lost under the feather boas. How much you enjoy this production depends on what’s in your bag.”
Con Nats
2.5 pink bags
An all star cast has come together for this queer rendition of Oscar Wilde’s famous play. It opens with a dance number with pink dresses and feathers, which is a contrast to the set and dress, which are quite faithful to the script. These are very well done.
No need to go into the plot of two English upper class bachelors who have invented an Earnest and a Bunbury to give them an excuse from formalities so they can go partying.
Ncuti Gatwa (Doctor Who, Sex Education) stars as a Algernon, a non-binary bachelor who implores a prancing Jack (Hugh Skinner Mamma Mia: Here We Go Again!, Fleabag) to go Bunburying. Australian actress Eliza Scanlen (Babyteeth, Little Women) plays a very innocent Cecily while Ronkẹ Adékoluẹjo plays a very sexual Gwendolen.
The script is a brilliant one full of sharp wit and repartee. Some great lines have endured as long as this play. But director, Max Webster (Life of Pi) takes the actors over the hill and far away as they focus on camping it up. There’s lots of winks to the audience, slapstick and physical humour. There are gay undertones which are turned into overtures between the four leads which in the final act reach university review standard. If there’s a chance at milking a laugh, they’ve got the bucket and stool out and there’s enough ham to last you until next Christmas.
Sharon D Clarke gives Lady Windermere a Caribbean flavour and plays her character straight. Her costumes and delivery are brilliant. She anchors the play and shows you don’t need to telegraph your jokes or put them on seven billboards for the audience to laugh.
This production would go well with a Sydney Mardis Gras festival as it is unashamedly aimed at a queer audience which Oscar himself would enjoy. I really love the script and wit which was lost under the feather boas. How much you enjoy this production depends on what’s in your bag.
Con Nats, On The Screen
