4 STARS, July 20-22. A post World War I play that shines a torch on those that fought and survived and those that must live with the consequences
Somerset Maugham’s 1932 play is a bittersweet tale of heroism, desperation and creeping madness. Set in the well-to-do middle class drawing room of a family coming to terms with life post World War I and post Depression, the play revolves around Leonard and Charlotte Ardsley, their son, Sydney, and their three daughters, Eva, Lois and Ethel. Sydney (Chris Butterfield), blinded in combat, rails against the current establishment and lack of empathy and support directed to post war ‘heroes’.
His sisters, although desperate in their own way for a better life, hold on to a sense that their time is still to come. A romanticism still exists for each of them in comparison to the battle wearied men whose hearts have been hardened by the War. The youngest, Lois (played with the right mix of flirtation and ambition by Annie Rose Chapman) battles with her conscience after being wooed by the husband of a family friend. She knows she shouldn’t go along with his advances but something titillates, and in an age of austerity, the promise of wealth and the bright lights of London outweigh the repulsion she feels for a man old enough to be her father (a buoyant Paul Foster).
Eva, also unmarried, has high morals and an idealistic romantic view of what life could be like were she to find a husband to replace the love of her life killed in the War. How long must she wait? She sets her sights on a decorated ex naval commander whose life in civvy street has left him on the verge of financial ruin. Eva offers to help by quite literally paying him to marry her. She’s spurned and this rejection sets her on a path of despair. Meanwhile, Ethel (Michelle Blake), is unhappily married to a drunken, uncouth farmer (convincingly played by Graham Collier), who also has a yearning to elope with Lois.
Each of the characters is selfish in their own way. The father (a solid performance from Wally Walters) refuses to acknowledge the desperation around him. The mother (a stoic Linda Russell), when told she has months to live seems to care little for her children left behind. The only characters who seem to have a real sense of decency and honour are Gwen, Wilfred’s wife (nicely played by Jean Warner) and Dr Prentice, Mrs Ardsley’s brother (Tony Frier). But Maugham is showing us that it is the experiences we go through that create character. The need to escape, to belong, to have stability are the things that bind us together and tear us apart. I was struck by how relevant it is to what’s taking place in our world today. Even with ‘Help for Heroes’ do not many of our ex servicemen find themselves in a similar situation?
There are times when we could be watching Wodehouse but what lies beneath is far more menacing and disturbing. When the play finishes with a rendition of God save the King, we don’t feel patriotic pride but rather a sense that unless we pull together - patriotism, honour and glory will be no more than empty words. The great writers, and Maugham is amongst them, seem to reach into a timeless world.
The set is simple yet effective, and immediately gives us a sense of time and place. The production is well directed by Judith Dolley, and her experience shows in the staging. The action takes place centrally and she cleverly manoeuvres the actors in such a way that we feel close to the action and yet apart from it. There are strong performances from the cast. And although, at times, initially, it felt a little stilted, the actors soon got into the flow and we were drawn into the story. I especially liked Jill Coles haunted Eva, despair never far from the surface and her descent into madness, when it came, was shocking and believable. And the ‘engagement’ scene between her and Collie Stratton (an excellent Nick Lund) is very well played. I also liked Tony Frier’s Doctor, who calmly captures the sense of empathy, honour and duty that Maugham’s world is so obviously craving.
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