Tag Archives: Orange Tree Theatre

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“Guards At The Taj” at the Orange Tree Theatre

Director Adam Karim and his superb cast – Maanuv Thiara and Usaamah Ibraheem Hussain – have evidently been inspired by this superb play from Rajiv. Last seen, too long ago, at the Bush Theatre, this is script with the ability to bring out the best from creatives who tackle it.

Although a two-hander, and relatively short, Joseph’s play is packed with politics and philosophy. The characters, Humayun and Babur, are deep thinkers with a keen sense of beauty. Karim brings out the piece’s tragicomic tone with both dark humour and trauma captured by the performers.

The scenario is simple: two guards working before the Taj Mahal is completed go on to play a role in Emperor Shah Jahan’s plan to make sure nothing as beautiful is ever built again. The play is gruesome and tense but the chemistry between the performers ensures we never lose sight of a moving personal drama.

These are detailed depictions, right from the start; even picking up swords shows us two different personalities. The surprising comedy is especially strong, the banter adds to the idea that these childhood friends are like brothers. At the same time, Thiara manages to convey the weight of expectations from Humayun’s father. And Hussain elaborates Babur’s “fairytales or predictions” with such delight, it is contagious.

Staging the play in the round is done with great care (there are moments that making sure everyone gets a good look might be relaxed). And the production benefits from excellent music, credited to Niraj Chag with sound design by Xana. One highlight is a moment of comfort, sung by Humayun to his traumatised friend, a tune taken up and, like the birds he finds beautiful, allowed to fly. 

While there are a lot of laugh out loud moments, overall Karim’s view is bleak. There is a sense that the men are trapped in their circumstances – only their imaginations can take flight. How seriously could we take suggestions of escape? Giving both roles a boyish charm proves a fascinating move. Karim interprets the play with little hope but plenty of emotion and the result is profound.

Until 16 November 2024

www.orangetreetheatre.co.uk

Photo by Lidia Crisafulli

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“She Stoops to Conquer” at the Orange Tree Theatre

Moving Oliver Goldsmith’s 1773 comedy to the 1930s proves a neat idea in director Tom Littler’s new production. Add a cracking cast and some seasonal touches and the show, which would be perfect any time of year, makes a very happy Christmas theatre trip.

This comedy of manners and mistaken identity is well known, but Littler makes it blissfully light. The wit is verbose, surely tongue-tying for performers, but the delivery here is always clear. Dashes of Wodehouse help – the division of town and country and a clash of classes become spiffing fun. And Littler is very much at home working in the round, making sure the action zips along among Anett Black and Neil Irish’s stylish design.

This is an ensemble that looks as if it’s having a great time and every role comes into its own. First up are Mr and Mrs Hardcastle, the country gentry, played by David Horovitch and Greta Scacchi. Horovitch gets a laugh out of nearly every line as the “grumbletonian” patriarch. Scacchi keeps up, despite a less forgiving role – anyone else feel sorry for this doting mum who doesn’t get her trip to London? As her prodigal offspring, Guy Hughes is the convivial heart of the play. He’s great with crowds and the Orange Tree’s community performers who have a lovely pub scene – well done them.

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Guy Hughes and theCommunity Company

Celebrations continue with the play’s pairs of lovers. Sabrina Bartlett and Robert Mountford are at home as super-toffs plotting to elope, their roles serving as fitting mirrors to our stars, Tanya Reynolds and Freddie Fox. As the leads, the comedy from this pair is perfection. Reynolds is a great flapper. And so is Fox – the perfect “silly puppy” – especially when his “list of blunders” is slowly revealed.

Among the giggles there is sincerity, too. Reynolds shows us the dutiful daughter Goldsmith wrote, as well as the modern woman we want. When she claps her hands at a scheme, you want to join in. But when she starts to fall in love, it’s sweet. And who doesn’t like a rom-com at Christmas?

Until 13 January 2024

www.orangethreetheatre.co.uk

Photos by Marc Brenner

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“That Face” at the Orange Tree Theatre

It’s hard to believe Polly Stenham was just 19 when she wrote her award-winning play. Fifteen years after its première at the Royal Court, this solid, focused writing feels just as fresh, while its harsh yet humorous look at mental health is as urgent as ever.

Parentification is the theme (that’s from the programme) as mother Martha is looked after by young son Henry. These are tremendous roles for Niamh Cusack and Kasper Hilton-Hille. Cusack’s experience means she can make her character magnetic. While her actions are upsetting, even inexcusable, traces of the woman she was before illness are clear. Martha’s own trauma makes her sympathetic and her love for Henry is twisted but indisputable. Hilton-Hille makes a professional stage debut whose precociousness mirrors Stenham’s back in 2007. It is heart-wrenching to see how the youth has tried to save his mother and the impact it has had. Henry is “a good boy with bad parents” but there is a frightening rage to the writing and performance that Hilton-Hille conveys brilliantly.


Youth is what we’re about – which makes sense – but also makes Martha a mystery. And the only other adult role suffers. Dominic Mafham does an excellent job as the absent father, arriving from Hong Kong late in the day. But while the character deserves the blame he gets, such finger pointing comes close to simplistic and his inclusion in the play feels rushed.

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Kasper Hilton-Hille and Ruby Stokes

On firmer ground, the play tries hard to be more than a shocker, and director Josh Seymour does well to bring out ambivalence – Martha and her boy aren’t allowed to steal the show. A daughter provides an excellent role for Ruby Stokes, a second fantastic stage debut, who impresses with precious moments of restraint. She’s a foil, for sure, but still a full character – and funny. A schoolfriend is also successfully written and gives us another performance to praise, this time from Sarita Gabony. Both girls could be dismissed as spoiled brats – Stenham has a keen eye for privilege in many forms -until you see what they are going through.

There’s no doubt that That Face is fraught, possibly too much so for all tastes. But, importantly, much of the drama and self-indulgence is not just because of the teenagers. Martha’s “upside down world” is too obvious at times. And the “nightmarish quality” (cleverly reflected in Eleanor Bull’s design, which includes an excellent revolving bed) referred to is far from subtle. There are lots of uncomfortable moments that Seymour handles bravely. If some of decisions might be better suited to a less intimate venue, that might bode well for the show’s future. I could see a transfer for this one – the play and production deserve it.

Until 7 October 2023

www.orangetreetheatre.co.uk


Photos by Johan Perrson

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“The Circle” at the Orange Tree Theatre

If Somerset Maugham’s work as a playwright is unfairly neglected, as director Tom Littler suggests, this revival of a play from 1921 should create a lot of interest. The piece is superbly crafted and hugely entertaining – I haven’t laughed so much in a theatre for a long time. And the production is excellent; overflowing with talent, it is a tribute to the text.

The Circle is a relatively simple drawing room drama, albeit expertly explicated. The scandalous Lady Kitty, who eloped with Lord Hughie, returns home to see her abandoned son, Arnold, but has to deal with her husband Clive hanging around. While aristocratic manners downplay the drama, Maugham ups the stakes with the threat that history is about to repeat itself – Arnold’s wife, Elizabeth, has fallen in love with a house guest called Teddie.

The joy of the play comes with the comedy – the script is full of acerbic observations that are funny while creating tension. And every line is delivered to perfection. Much of the bile comes from the cuckolded Clive and taking the role, Clive Francis hides the character’s spite under an air of sophistication that is a twisted pleasure to behold.

After so many years together, Kitty and Hughie have suffered and squabble – which Clive is “excessively amused” by. The scenes of bickering are performed to perfection by Jane Asher and Nicholas Le Prevost. Asher is brilliant at suggesting wounded vanity while even grunts from Le Provost get giggles. The three bring an air of insouciance to the play that makes The Circle delicious and dramatic.

Admittedly, the fun peaks at the interval. The division between Kitty as a Mother or a Woman is made moving by Asher, her character explains she has attended “a bitter school”, but is overstated. And Maugham takes Arnold’s marriage and the predicament of the younger characters a little more seriously than many, nowadays, might. Clive’s plot to help his son isn’t just silly, it is transparent and it jars with what we have seen of young Elizabeth who is a satisfying character. Still, the will-they-won’t-they run away scenario is smartly handled and ambiguous emotions provide depth.

There’s a second trio of performances to enjoy: Pete Ashmore as Arnold, Olivia Vinall as Elizabeth and Chirag Benedict Lobo as Teddie make a love triangle that is convincing with neat comic touches. It is to Littler’s credit that he respects seriousness in these scenes; surely there was the temptation to play looser and carry on the fun? The central idea, that “the tragedy of love is indifference”, is preserved. If The Circle’s conclusion doesn’t quite convince, the revival itself is excellent. And with performances so accomplished, the show left me wanting more Maugham.

Until 17 June 2023

www.orangetreetheatre.com

Photo by Ellie Kurttz

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“While The Sun Shines” at the Orange Tree Theatre

There are plenty of laughs while Paul Miller’s triumphant production of Terence Rattigan’s brilliant comedy lights up the stage. This is one of the funniest things I’ve seen in a long time. 

The wartime wedding of Earl Harpeden and Lady Elisabeth becomes a farce when she meets two Allied soldiers who make her think again about getting hitched. The trouble is a question of experience: blasé  Bobbie has been around, while Elisabeth is too innocent for both their good.  

Philip Labey takes the lead as the Earl with an “open boyish manner” balanced by a knowing touch: this toff is nice and not dim. Labey’s is a massive role marked by a generosity to colleagues that benefits all. And Labey has the ability to generate sympathy; for all the flippancy and fun, I wanted the marriage to go ahead. Rebecca Collingwood plays the intended, showing Elisabeth has a mind of her own. Collingwood’s depiction of wide-eyed innocence is funnier than you can imagine – howls of laughter greet the simplest statements. 

Rebecca Collingwood in While the Sun Shines - photo by Ali Wright
Rebecca Collingwood as Lady Elisabeth

Conor Glean is an appealing Lieutenant Mulvaney fresh off the boat from the US of A. The performance is neat and the humour gentle. Michael Lumsden and John Hudson play a bluff Major and a refined butler respectively – both to perfection. If Jordan Mifsúd’s Lieutenant Colbert got more laughs from me, put it down to ‘appy memories of ‘Allo ‘Allo. Mifsúd’s faux-French is a skilled work of genius. 

Sophie Khan Levy in While the Sun Shines - photo by Ali Wright_
Sophie Khan Levy

Really stealing the show is the man-eater and self-confessed trollop Mabel Crum. I wonder if she was Rattigan’s favourite part? Mabel gets laughs even when she’s not on stage. Sophie Khan Levy’s embodiment of this confident and caring character shows how essential the role is in this carefully constructed play. 

It’s Mabel who ends up in charge. Don’t be fooled that she’s continually sent to the kitchen. Prodding male egos in While The Sun Shines shows a subversive touch that has aged well. The distasteful attempts at seduction would have been as off for Rattigan as they are for us, but offence is deflated by how useless the men are! And it isn’t just one couple under the microscope here – it’s the institution of marriage. That Mabel stands aloof from it all makes her a character to cheer. Mabel gets the last laugh. The audience laugh all along. 

Until 15 January 2022 

www.orangetreetheatre.co.uk 

 Photos by Ali Wright

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“Shaw Shorts” at the Orange Tree Theatre

Two Bernard Shaw tales of topsy-turvy love affairs – smart, insightful and great fun – make a strong beginning for this Richmond venue’s exciting ‘Recovery’ season.

Directed with precision by Shaw expert Paul Miller, both half-hour pieces poke fun at moralising and pretension, taking a dig at contrarian sophisticates (Shaw even puts in a joke at his own expense). The dense dialogue – impeccably delivered – brims with intelligence and wit.

How He Lied To Her Husband

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Dorothea Myer-Bennett and Joe Bolland

First up is an almost-affair between a married woman and a young poet that has delightful performances from Dorothea Myer-Bennett and Joe Bolland. “Nothing improper” has happened between Mrs Bompas and Mr Apjohn… and, just as it might, they start to argue.

The arrival of the husband provides a neat twist that Jordan Mifsúd (pictured top), who brings considerable swagger to the “prosaic” Mr Bompas, makes the most of. The dynamic between the trio proves unexpected and builds in humour.

To the detriment of the whole, Shaw is preoccupied with the character of Apjohn, the poet, who makes silly claims to live on a “higher plane” and feels “growing pains” at his loss of Romanticism. Despite Miller’s balanced direction and Bolland’s efforts, the satire and the fin-de-siècle trope of anguished artist, hasn’t aged well.

Overruled

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Alex Bhat and Hara Cannas

Time has been kinder to the second show, which is funnier as a result. Two couples have holiday romances with each other, then accidentally meet, and even attempt to compromise about continuing their flirtations.

The base for the comedy is strong and the women in the piece stronger. With another superb performance (in a more interesting role) Myers-Bennett is joined by Hara Yannas, who differentiates her sweeter character well.

The men – hopeless in different ways – are funnier still as we get to laugh at their neurosis and (always a hoot) a touch of mid-life crisis. Mifsúd lets his hair down (literally) as a lawyer on the loose, while Alex Bhat has a great time with tongue-twisting lines and convoluted arguments.

All the characters give the impression that the risks of an extra marital affair are more exciting than the sex involved itself… a view Shaw mocks as abstract and downright odd. The comedic tension created is, like the claims made about the danger of an affair, “delicious”. And the delivery from all, marked by a justified confidence, is a real treat. 

Enjoy the plays live or take advantage of the OT ON SCREEN programme (planned for the whole season), which broadcasts this show on 3 and 4 June.

Until 26 June 2021

www.orangetreetheatre.co.uk

Photos by The Other Richard

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“Outside” from the Orange Tree Theatre

Following the show titled Inside last month, this companion set of three short plays comes as the Richmond venue’s return to live theatre is announced. Starting with a couple of Bernard Shaw pieces, on the 22nd of May, an exciting year ahead is planned. It’s still a wait but at least this weekend you can show support for the venue online.

Two Billion Beats

First we go outside to a school playground. Sonali Bhattacharyya’s play has two young sisters, Asha and Bettina, discussing bullying and racism. Zainab Hasan and Ashna Rabheru are excellent in the roles. The quality of the writing is indicated by how vividly a teacher, Mrs L., who never appears, is depicted. With plenty of insight, this is a piece that leaves you wanting more. It’s a shame the production ran into technical difficulties towards the end.

Robinah Kironde and Fiston Barek
Robinah Kironde and Fiston Barek

Prodigal

An estranged son in Kalungi Ssebandeke’s play returns to encounter his sister, after his mother’s death, and the action takes place at the door of their family home. The drama arrives quickly and is effective. Expanding the action to a conflict over a life insurance policy has potential. A complex history of immigration is explored sensitively while issues of masculinity are also raised.

I wonder if Fiston Barek’s performance as the titular character might include more sinister touches? We’re told of anger and “a cartoon image of what a man is” but see mostly charm. Opposite him, Robinah Kironde does an excellent job: her character is hurt and frustrated in equal measure with touches of confusion.

Those technical hitches resulted in this piece, wisely, starting again at one point. And I should add that I’ve promptly been given the chance to see the shows again. But as if another reminder were needed, it does make you miss a real-life experience. Even looking at a safety curtain when there is a problem is better than a notice on a screen.

Temi Wilkey at the Orange Tree Theatre Richmond
Temi Wilkey

The Kiss

The evening concludes with a monologue from Zoe Cooper that looks at recent experiences. Getting to know the character of Lou, ably performed by Temi Wilkey, is a treat. Moving out of town, Lou and her partner end up struggling with life under lockdown. Getting to know the neighbours, taking up new hobbies and behaving…a little…strangely are all included. It is possible that The Kiss could be funnier. But Lou’s reassessment of her life and future goals will surely resonate with many. The show is full of detail and admirably low key, like all three pieces it illustrates fine work on the part of director Georgia Green.

Until 17 April 2021

www.orangetreetheatre.co.uk

Photos by Ali Wright

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“Inside” from the Orange Tree Theatre

Joining the list of theatres streaming shows live, this offering from Richmond is a high-quality affair. A better-than-most monologue and two two-handers show three different approaches to stories about the Covid-19 lockdown.

Guidesky and I

This smart script by Deborah Bruce is a superb vehicle for the wonderful Samantha Spiro. Acknowledging how difficult this past year has been, the character of Diana is clearing out her deceased mother’s home and trying not to “unravel” at the same time. With some excellent sound design from Anna Clock, an elegant stream-of-consciousness monologue increases in tension throughout its half-hour duration. It’s clever to make Diana an unappealing character who’s short-tempered, stressed and angry (I’m sure we can all recognise some of this in ourselves of late). A problem with an online order, which holds the piece together admirably, proves startlingly effective and surprisingly moving.

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Ishia Bennison

When the Daffodils

Joel Tan’s piece is less successful, although there are strong performances from Ishia Bennison and Jessica Murrain, who do well to hide a mawkish tone. Small pleasures and the importance of the caring profession are handled well enough. But Tan elaborates into a poorly sketched dystopian future where a “consensus” has resulted in older people quite literally imprisoned in their homes. It’s easy to see where the thinking comes from and, although there’s surely a debate to be had around such a topic, Tan’s contrived twists add confusion rather than substance.

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Fisayo Akinade and Sasha Winslow

Ursa Major

For more big topics highlighted by Covid-19, Joe White has a young man with OCD in conversation with a “houseless” woman. If the backstories about Jay and Callisto aren’t quite convincing, the performances from Fisayo Akinade and Sasha Winslow are fine and the characters themselves likeable. White ticks boxes about lockdown life, and he does it well, with an underlying challenge about “normal interaction” that is sharp. Dark energy provides an impressive and effective metaphor throughout and there’s some welcome humour. Moving away from the theme of lockdown to think about distance more generally (well done!), White even provides a sweet ending.

Outside

For all the shows, the direction from Anna Himali Howard deserves high praise, as respecting the tone of each writer benefits the event overall. United by an “underlying feeling of unease”, at times excessively, it’s no surprise that Inside isn’t cheerful. But each playwright has managed to reflect our times. Maybe things will perk up for the second programme (15-17 April) when the theme, like us, moves away from our homes?

Until 27 March 2021

www.orangetreetheatre.co.uk

Photos by Ali Wright