Lettice and Lovage

Lettice and Lovage

Carlton Players

27/02/24

 

Peter Shaffer’s Lettice and Lovage is an unlikely story of two women totally opposite in character, attitude and imagination that form an unlikely friendship that should not work, but, over consumption of a homemade medieval beverage ‘Quaff’ their bizarre bond develops, and we the audience are hooked. On researching the play, I was intrigued to find the role of Lettice was originally written by Shaffer for Dame Maggie Smith.

The plot revolves around an unlikely friendship between two completely opposite strong women, Lettice Douffet and Lotte Schoen. Lettice played by the extremely talented Katy Downes is a tour operator at Fustian House, the most boring historic Tudor house in Wiltshire, England. The play begins with a series of Lettice’s tours complete with a crying baby, each one becoming more and more grandiose as she elaborates and embellishes historical events and characters that are associated with the house. ‘Enlarge! Enliven! Enlighten!’ says Lettice Douffet justifying her somewhat romantic and dramatic elaborations on history. A total free spirit is Lettice, a lover of history and theatre and a sworn enemy of all in life that is 'mere’ is frustrated by her dreary tour guide duties, so she entertains herself and the tourists with her outrageous dramatic tales. Katy is a tour d force completely believable as the eccentric theatrical and passionate Lettice, every word and sentence had enormous depth and resonance her comedic timing and dramatic performance really made me want to join the next tour session!!

After attending unannounced to one of her infamous tours, Lettice is taken to task and reprimanded by Lotte Schoen from the government Historical Homes Preservation department. Lettice is summoned to London, to Lotte’s office, where she is sacked. Being of a significant age this is rather devastating news for Lettice. Lotte excellently played by Paula Concliffe-Hughes a grey personnel bureaucrat who worships fact as much as Lettice reveres romantic fantasy. Paula is the ideal foil as Lotte and, from the start, hints that there is more to this brisk woman than meets the eye. At Ms Schoen’s office we meet Miss Framer, played beautifully by Debbie Smith. From her first bumbling entrance we knew we were in for a treat. Her portrayal as a nervous, scatty secretary was hilarious, she visually showed her admiration for the excentric Lettice.

Directed by Mike Sanders whose casting was perfect for Peter Shaffer’s funny, enlightening and refreshing unconventional drama. The two leading roles Lettica and Lotte are so well cast, ably supported by the ‘tourists’ (Phyllis Brighouse, Linda Critchley, Richard Isles, Rebecca Williams, Lucy, Ashdown, Sallyanne Nelson and Gareth Crawshaw who even on their short time on stage were funny and engaging. Katy Downes was splendidly dressed as the Shakespearian obsessed Lettice, well done to the wardrobe team.  The simple staging in Act 1 scene 1 and 2 highlighted the theatrical influence for the décor of the Earls Court Basement flat belonging to the excentric Lettice in Act 2 and 3. Well-conceived staging by Liz Youster and team.

 

Act 2 begins as Lotte arrives unannounced at Lettice’s basement Earl’s Court flat; she brings with her a reference for a job she feels will suit her unusual talents.  We then realise Lotte is allergic to cats, so ‘Felina’ (Malouseth Moffat nee Downes) Lettice’s cat has to be locked away.  The two women find they have a lot in common: both are the solitary product of foreign forebears and, while Lettice is steeped in Elizabethan romanticism, influenced by her Shakespearean actress mother Lotte detests the physical ugliness of the modern architectural world, strongly influenced by her German father, mourning the loss of Georgian squares says, ‘The British destroyed London just as much as the Germans.’  Lettice offers Lotte her medieval home-made lovage (a lot of vodka) beverage: ‘Quaff’. The two women become hopelessly drunk and an unlikely bond of friendship begins.

Act 3 we find Lettice is in need of a solicitor, but for what? Well that we can’t say, however, this is truly where the real fun starts. What a plot twist! We are introduced to Mr Bardolph who is played with such wonderful timing and humour by Mike Hunter, how he was able to remain straight-faced is a real credit from straight forward legal jargon and how serious the situation is, to discussing why Lettice attacked Lotte Schoen with an axe!!  He is in turn horrified, perplexed and captivated by her story, which Lotte adds too on her arrival with a heavily bandaged head. This Is one of the funniest performances I have seen for a long time., we are privy to the blissfully descriptive explanation of the incident, which if I say involves King Charles the first, Good Queen Bess, and a log from Epping Forrest you may think historical be-heading re-enactments or maybe not.  I won’t give away anymore of the plot, other than to say it involves a cat and that Lettice is acquitted.

What an amazing evening at The Little Theatre tonight, it was such a shame the play did not attract the audience it truly deserved. Congratulations to all concerned in this challenging play, Peter Shaffer would love it.

Thank you for inviting me, it was a fabulous experience, I loved every minute.

 

Joanne Rymer

NODA

District 4

 

 

 

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