October 17, 2006
This frivolous confection – the original play by Beaumarchais, not the opera - is not often performed nowadays. I had never seen it and was curious how it would stand up without gorgeous music to support it. It is witty and clear-eyed, and this is a good translation. As is evident from their name, the Worn Garters Theatre Company is dedicated to the cheap and cheerful school of production. The cheerfulness is much in evidence, and very engaging, so we’ll start with the good news. They possess two great assets in Emily Partington, as a nervous, excitable Rosine, and George Hamer as a languid Count Almaviva. Their charisma, charm, and great personal beauty rose above the dismal costumes and enabled the audience to forgive quite a lot of fluffed lines; they were however equalled and then surpassed by Will Robertson as horrid old Bartholo, the deceived would-be husband. He was a delight and the absolute backbone of the play. I don’t know whether the cast were under-rehearsed or just very nervous on their first night, but they opened very uncertainly and were initially not at all up to the standards we have come to expect of student drama at Oxford. In fact my companion entreated me to depart at the interval; but I’m glad I stuck with it, because they really raised their game in the second half. Suddenly it all came together as an ensemble piece, started to be fun, and to work, and the audience started laughing. Some things can’t be fixed – the frightful tuneless songs, the scenery consisting of a job-lot of curtain material and a staple gun, the aforementioned costumes, and – guys! – your own shoes?! But some things could be and will grow and improve as the week goes on. Adam Skinner as the rascally Figaro was throwing away the deliciously cynical lines in which he brazenly proclaims his philosophy of fleecing with a smile – Adam, you can be a lot more out there with the personality, the masculinity of Figaro. Rosine and Almaviva – you can allow just a teensy sniff of sex to creep into your portrayal of the young lovers – don’t act as if someone is going to smack your hand with a ruler if you touch one another. James Reid as baffled villain Bazile needs no improvement and stole every scene he was in. At the end of the evening we felt we had been pleasingly entertained, which is certainly what Beaumarchais was aiming for; and if the cast continues to improve as they did last night, I’d recommend this for more than just curiosity value.