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Scenes from a marriage: Jab @parktheatre

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Jab takes us back to five years ago when no theatres were open. Instead, it was staying at home watching endless television, clapping for the NHS, mask-wearing and hand washing. Against this backdrop, isolation from a married couple of 29 years slowly drives them apart and to the brink. But while it captures the period well, you want to know more about this couple on the edge. It's currently playing at Park Theatre after its premiere run at the Finborough Theatre last year.  James McDermott's play is loosely based on his parent's lives during the pandemic. It opens with Ann (Kacey Ainsworth) and Don (Liam Tobin) watching the then Prime Minister Boris Johnson inform the nation they need to stay at home. She is an NHS worker, and he runs a vintage shop. As she is an essential worker, she has work to do, but he is forced to stay at home while his shop is closed. There's also another source of tension in that Anne brings in all the income in the household. And so we watch ...

Be a clown: Much Ado About Nothing @anticdispo

Shakespeareā€™s Much Ado About Nothing is set in rural France in the aftermath of World War II in this lively interpretation by Antic Disposition. The war may be over but the battle of the sexes and battle over rivalries is just about to begin. Itā€™s currently playing at Grays Inn Hall. 

Love gone wrong, mistaken identity and a infidelity make up this piece. And thereā€™s not a moment to lose in this adaption that moves through the story at a fast pace with music, mirth and merriment. And with a nod to the physical comedy of Jacques Tati, thereā€™s much clowning about too in this company consisting of English and French actors.

As the unlikely lovers, Nicholas Osmond as Benedick and Chiraz AĆÆch as BĆ©atrice strike the right balance with the physical and verbal humour of the piece. Alfie Webster makes the most of the brief yet dark character Don John who sets in motion much of the drama. 

Alexander Varey and Florianā€™s Andersen are also a delight as the intense young lovers, Claudio and Hero.

The piece has been touring the UK and France before arriving in London. Grayā€™s Inn was where Shakespeare himself performed.  But the stuffy atmosphere of the place seems to stifle the mood and mirth at times. And the sightlines arenā€™t so great either with its very long traverse staging. You get a sense that to  appreciate this production, it would be better to see it in an outdoor setting. Too bad it isnā€™t staged that way for its London stopover. Even if it meant competing with noise, bad weather and nasty pigeons. 

Still itā€™s evocative, classy and funny enough to be a delightful evening...   Directed by Ben Horslen and John Risebero, Much Ado About Nothing is at Grayā€™s Inn Hall until 1 September. 

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Photos by Scott Rylander

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