Jeeves and Wooster in Perfect Nonsense

Based on P.G. Wodehouse’s delightfully bonkers stories, Jeeves & Wooster in Perfect Nonsense was the perfect opening play for the return of the ALP to the stage.

This play within a play tells the story of a country house weekend which takes a turn for the worse, with Bertie Wooster unwittingly called upon to play matchmaker between the host’s drippy daughter Madeline and his friend Gussie. If Bertie, ably assisted by the ever-dependable Jeeves, can’t pull off the wedding of the season he’ll be forced to marry the ghastly girl himself!  When it dawns on Bertie that he can’t play every character himself in order to tell his story, he calls upon the services of his trusty butler, who in turn enlists his aunt Dahlia’s butler.

There was an ingenious set comprising of interior walls, doors and bookcases on castors, that could be easily put into place when a scene change was required.  These changes had obviously been well rehearsed and completed very efficiently by Jeeves during Bertie’s dialogue.  With the addition of a few well-chosen items of furniture, props and steps, the end result was both practical and appropriate. I particularly enjoyed the scene featuring Bertie’s Car which was very well conceived.  Costumes were also excellent with the occasional addition of an accessory to transform the butlers into the various characters.

Bertie Wooster was suitably portrayed as the upper-class buffoon that one expects, but with an endearing quality that made him very likeable as well as exasperating.  There was the odd occasion when the ends of sentences were lost due to the speed of his dialogue but this was a minor distraction and overall, he did a fine job. 

Jeeves was a sea of calm as he moved the set around in order to create the various locations for Bertie’s story.  He had a beautifully clipped upper-class accent and just the right amount of sarcasm to be amusing but never rude to his employer. A very entertaining and well acted performance.

Seppings, the butler to Bertie’s aunt, completed the trio and together with Jeeves, took on all of the other roles in the story.  He and Jeeves hopped from character to character and costume to costume with ease, keeping up a good pace throughout and providing some of the play’s most hilarious and farcical moments.

Of course, I must also mention the brilliant portrayal of a dog by Bartholomew Byng, who should be very proud of his debut appearance on the stage.

The tech team did a sterling job with the complicated sound queues, providing the opening and shutting of the door to great comedic effect.

This production was well directed with good attention to detail and plenty to keep the audience entertained. The actors handled the complicated plot and extensive dialogue well and provided a very entertaining evening to the appreciative audience. 

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