A Small Mind At The Theatre

I have seen very little restoration comedy, and with Playhouse Creatures  early this year, very much Restoration period, Masque Theatre has provided much of it this year, with this edition of Aphra Behn's 1677 play The Rover or The Banish'd Cavaliers . Behn was quite a landmark writer, recognised as one of the first women to make a living from writing (and has an extraordinary real-life worth researching). Perhaps having watched The Rover now, you can see why her work might well have been accepted back then. It is suitably bawdy, really extremely rude at times in places, definitely farcical (with disguise situations aplenty that wouldn't fool a blind man with a blindfold on) and perhaps most importantly, makes the woman much of the time the victims in the frequent sexual exploits. It clearly wasn't being anything that a man of the time wouldn't write, and probably means it lay a suitable path for success for Behn as a result. The Rover itself is tremendous...

I have seen three Shakespeare plays so far this year (and also Kiss Me Kate , if that counts) and rather uniquely every one of them has been outdoors, therefore upholding this pattern once more I headed off to Wicksteed Park for a little evening performance of perhaps what is regarded the Bard's most accessible play. I hadn't seen A Midsummer Night's Dream before this Masque Theatre production, however, I had experienced a little of it at last years The Shakespeare Story Trail, so I had seen a Puck and The Mechanicals in another form. Now, Shakespeare is a thing that I often appreciate rather than enjoy, and also admire if something a little different is attempted. Therefore this mad as a box of frogs production and indeed play was very much the most I have enjoyed Shakespeare. It is as was suggested a very accessible play, and for a first time viewing, the most I have been able to follow what is actually going on. This production, coming from the mega inventive bra...

I have seen two previous plays by Moira Buffini, writer of this dark comedy, they being Dying for It and Welcome to Thebes, and both were superbly entertaining plays with the former the closest to Dinner in its darkness of strorytelling. However for me, Dinner is much more style over substance and portraying quite a lot of what I often hate from many wannabe highbrow plays, pretentiousness. It's failure for me though comes from the story it attempts to tell rather that the brilliant characters it creates (and brought to life seriously well by this very strong cast). A dinner party from hell is how it describes itself and as it weaves its way to a showy (and yes, unpredictable conclusion) it goes to great pains in showing how clever it is by talking all big existential stuff as death, truth and suicide. I don't think the hell at this dinner party would be dealing with the crazy courses or the dramatic climax, it would be getting through the cleverer than its thinks it is dial...