The New Statesman A Review by Elizabeth Sheldon |
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The play followed the same format as the last production. The same set was used and more or less the same characters starred. Obviously the script has had to change since the beginning of the tour, as the Labour Party and Government has also changed in the last few weeks and the script reflected these changes very well. As we walked through the foyer to take our seats, we noticed the queue for refunds had a large number of people in the line. I suppose that is not surprising, as Rik Mayall is why most people bought tickets to this play. Mile Sherman played Alan B'Stard as Rik Mayall would have done. Really there was no other way to play this part that Rik has made his own. Mike was good, smooth and witty and his timing was good. He adlibbed once in the second half and was rewarded with a huge laugh. Rik Mayall of course would have adlibbed much more! Mike certainly worked hard and consequently had 4 curtain calls. The audience appreciated his performance. In fact, there was a lot of laughter at the jokes and even a smattering of applause at one of them. All the parts were smoothly executed by the actors, especially Garry Cooper as Frank the Parliamentary Private Secretary and Helen Baker and Flora were very good. As the evening progressed, I did wonder about the line between satire and libel and where it is drawn. Some of the jokes about our politicians were very very close to the mark. But I guess politicians have to turn a blind eye to this form of torture. Overall, it was an entertaining evening, but I am not sure I would rush to see a third version in this format. Get well soon Rik. |