The Pride **** TNT
What seems to begin as an elegant 50’s drawing room comedy suddenly travels half a century forward in a slick manoeuvre which catapults the characters into present day London and alternative versions of their initial selves. The names (and the actors) stay the same, but the situation Oliver, Philip and Sylvia find themselves in has changed significantly — gay sex is out in the open, and it’s no longer a question of too little opportunity but of far too much, with every transient encounter an irresistible temptation for promiscuous journalist Oliver.
Alexi Kaye Campbell’s first produced play shifts fluidly between the two eras, highlighting the dilemmas facing homosexual men in very different times. As the Olivers, Bertie Carvel (definitely an actor to watch) is subtly superb throughout as he tries to hold on to the man he loves, whilst JJ Feild’s staccato delivery as married 50’s Philip gives way to real anguish as he realises, but still fights against, his true nature.
Lyndsey Marshal’s Sylvia (distraught as Philip’s betrayed wife, feisty as Oliver’s confidante) switches convincingly between vulnerable book illustrator and assertive actress, and Tim Steed makes just as much impact in a trio of smaller roles, not least that of the doctor whose vomit-inducing aversion therapy aims to replace same-sex attraction with disgust.
Royal Court Theatre Sloane Square, SW1 Phone 020 7565 5000 Until 20th December Tickets £10-£15
What seems to begin as an elegant 50’s drawing room comedy suddenly travels half a century forward in a slick manoeuvre which catapults the characters into present day London and alternative versions of their initial selves. The names (and the actors) stay the same, but the situation Oliver, Philip and Sylvia find themselves in has changed significantly — gay sex is out in the open, and it’s no longer a question of too little opportunity but of far too much, with every transient encounter an irresistible temptation for promiscuous journalist Oliver.
Alexi Kaye Campbell’s first produced play shifts fluidly between the two eras, highlighting the dilemmas facing homosexual men in very different times. As the Olivers, Bertie Carvel (definitely an actor to watch) is subtly superb throughout as he tries to hold on to the man he loves, whilst JJ Feild’s staccato delivery as married 50’s Philip gives way to real anguish as he realises, but still fights against, his true nature.
Lyndsey Marshal’s Sylvia (distraught as Philip’s betrayed wife, feisty as Oliver’s confidante) switches convincingly between vulnerable book illustrator and assertive actress, and Tim Steed makes just as much impact in a trio of smaller roles, not least that of the doctor whose vomit-inducing aversion therapy aims to replace same-sex attraction with disgust.
Royal Court Theatre Sloane Square, SW1 Phone 020 7565 5000 Until 20th December Tickets £10-£15
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