Abigail's Party

ABIGAIL’S PARTY by Mike Leigh is the well known play from the 70s about one upmanship. Although on the surface it appears to be a comedy, it is, at times excruciating and claustrophic as the cocktail party which starts off with smiles, descends into chaos and tragedy.    This is an evening spent with the new middle class of the 1970s when cheques were still written regularly, a job in computers was relatively rare and a meal out was a rare treat saved for very special occasions. 

The set was of the highest standard and depicted a suburban home of the 1970s down to the tiniest detail. The wallpaper was loud and the décor in keeping with the time.   The props were fantastic and their detail brought great authenticity to the play, making it seem very real.  These included a trimphone, drinks trolley, ash trays, fibre light. Usually, Abigail’s party is not seen, however, in this production, we are given an impression of the action at the party, at the side of the main stage; through a curtain we see silhouettes of the party goers and at times the music matches the action on the stage: All Right Now, Art for Arts’ Sake and Don’t Leave me this way which was dramatically matched to Lawrence’s heart attack and demise.

The costumes hair and make up were excellent and in keeping with the time period; Beverley’s flowing dress was just perfect.   Her hair, swept up into curls complemented her outfit and enabled us to see her dangly, period earrings.   Similarly the rest of the cast were dressed in keeping with the time, enhancing their characters. 

This play reflected the values of time within this strata of society; staying in a loveless marriage, showing off material possessions and at times, it was necessarily awkward and intense as Beverley’s overbearing presence put pressure on Susan to drink to excess, Laurence to be at her beck and call, forcing the group to smoke and giving unwanted advice to Angela on how to apply lipstick!    At times she is too nasty for words.    Among the acid remarks and put downs, there are some great comic moments;  one of my favourites was the mention of the pilchard curry!    This was a production that oozed flair and timing and the cast worked well as a team.  Jackie Kennedy as Beverley did a lot of the heavy lifting as the monstrous Bev and it was fun to pick up on the dated conversation; the Co-op and being reminded of the proliferation of social smoking.   The Creative Team and the direction of Geoff Smith, are to be congratulated on this superb production that was an evening of caustic wit, thought provoking awkwardness and a trip down memory lane that is sometimes best forgotten. 

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