Jack Absolute Flies Again: a ‘crowd-pleasing comedy’ with an excellent cast
National Theatre production has the same ‘giddy abandon’ as One Man, Two Guvnors
“So, comic lightning does strike twice,” said Nick Curtis in the London Evening Standard. A decade ago Richard Bean created one of the National Theatre’s biggest ever hits by taking an 18th century classic comedy, The Servant of Two Masters, and reworking it as One Man, Two Guvnors, set in 1960s Brighton.
In conjunction with Oliver Chris, who starred in that show, Bean has now pulled off something “every bit as uproarious and ribald” by transposing Sheridan’s The Rivals from Regency Bath to a country house in Sussex, where an RAF squadron has been stationed during the Battle of Britain. It has the “same ungoverned humour, giddy abandon and metatheatrical playfulness” as One Man, Two Guvnors. But it is also “its own thing” – skewering “British class-consciousness and exceptionalism, as well as sexism, xenophobia and ‘warstalgia’”.
I found Guvnors wearying, said Clive Davis in The Times. But I loved this “joyous romp”, which is well anchored by Caroline Quentin’s “adorable, potty-mouthed” Mrs Malaprop. She has some wonderful moments, said Patrick Marmion in the Daily Mail, such as when she revives her character’s music-hall pre-history, singing with a soprano warble while accompanying herself on the ukulele.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
In fact, the whole cast of this “crowd-pleasing comedy” is excellent, including Laurie Davidson as our “plucky pipe-sucking hero” Jack, who is in hot pursuit of Lydia (Natalie Simpson), a member of the resident Women’s Auxiliary Air Force. It’s pacily staged by director Emily Burns, and the dialogue is a “blizzard of bawdy Carry-On innuendo”.
I could have done with rather fewer “nudge-nudge wink-wink” gags and malapropisms, said Fiona Mountford in The Daily Telegraph. They became tiresome after a while. And although the script’s “arch knowingness” is amusing, it stops us caring about the characters.
Ultimately, the play has neither much emotional weight nor real satirical message, said Andrzej Lukowski on Time Out. It is “very funny”, but it’s no more “than the sum of its laughs”.
Olivier, National Theatre, London SE1 (nationaltheatre.org.uk). Until 3 September
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
5 high-caliber cartoons about Kristi Noem shooting her puppy
Cartoons Artists take on the rainbow bridge, a farm upstate, and more
By The Week US Published
-
The Week Unwrapped: Why is the world running low on blood?
Podcast Scientists believe universal donor blood is within reach – plus, the row over an immersive D-Day simulation, and an Ozempic faux pas
By The Week Staff Published
-
Rishi Sunak's asylum spat with Ireland explained
In Depth Irish government plans to override court ruling that the UK is unsafe for asylum seekers
By The Week UK Published
-
Properties of the week: houses with enchanting gardens
The Week Recommends Featuring pretty homes in Hampshire, Devon and West Sussex
By The Week UK Published
-
Venice Biennale 2024: from the good to the bad to the downright 'bizarre'
The Week Recommends Central exhibition features the work of some 330 artists
By The Week UK Published
-
Sunset Song: gripping theatre that's 'close to magic'
The Week Recommends Morna Young's 'first-class adaptation' of Lewis Grassic Gibbon's classic novel
By The Week UK Published
-
Challengers: 'the most purely pleasurable film of the year so far'
The Week Recommends Zendaya plays a former tennis player turned coach in this 'almost ridiculously' sexy drama
By The Week UK Published
-
Baby Reindeer: a 'compelling and unforgettable' series
The Week Recommends Comedian Richard Gadd's disturbing Netflix drama about stalking
By The Week UK Published
-
Daniel Wallace's 5 favorite books that should not be forgotten
Feature The author recommends works by Italo Calvino, Evan S. Connell, and more
By The Week US Published
-
6 picturesque homes in Arizona
Feature Featuring a glass elevator in Sedona and a grotto waterfall in Paradise Valley
By The Week Staff Published
-
Silversea cruise review: a Central and North American adventure
The Week Recommends An incredible journey featuring cultural exploration, cooking classes, comfort and more
By Yasemen Kaner-White Published