My Old Lady

A play about an unsuccessful, three times divorced, middle aged man who has inherited an apartment in Paris inhabited by an elderly woman and her daughter isn’t generally the type of piece to get my theatrical juices flowing, however Wheathampstead Dramatic Society’s latest offering of “My Old Lady” by Israel Horovitz certainly managed to do just that. It takes a confident Director to give his own show a good appraisal before curtain up, however Robert Naylor-Stables was on solid ground with this one.

The play only concerns three people - Mathias (Jonathan Field), as a failed American novelist, Mathilde (Jan Westgarth) as an old lady well capable of speaking her mind and Chloe (Julie Field) as an unhappy spinster daughter. It emerges that Mathilde was once the lover of Mathias’ father; this is one of those plays where the mind wonders about what may happen but hopes that it doesn’t. Surprisingly nothing much does happen, but it is ultimately a warm hearted piece of theatre that leaves you happy that everything works out in the end.

Jonathan Field played his role with a seeming ease and his American accent was secure and consistent throughout. The role required him to portray a range of different emotions, and whether it was anger, sadness or the more light hearted side of his character he controlled them all with skill. A very well-crafted performance.

Jan Westgarth also gave us a fine performance as she moved from a sharp-tongued matriarch to vulnerable old lady and held our interest throughout. She ably managed to display a ninety (or ninety-two) year old both physically and mentally very well.

The final participant was Julie Field who gave us an initially stern and somewhat frightening Chloe before gently thawing into a likeable character. Although I struggled to believe the suddenly blooming relationship between herself and Mathias I do think that was more down to the script than the actors’ or director’s interpretation.

All three actors played their parts with aplomb and connected well together. Particular highlights were the face to face scene of anger between Mathias and Chloe in which they managed to hold onto pure hostility for what seemed a long time, and also the beginning of Act Two between Mathias and Mathilde where the past actions of his father were revealed - very well played. Timing throughout was also spot on notably when the lib matched the record playing perfectly.

Robert Naylor-Stables’ belief in his actors was grounded on confidence; his direction was effective and he moved his actors around the stage effortlessly. The pace throughout each scene never dragged, although the scene changes themselves could have been a little shorter.

The set itself was a simple black background with furniture and artefacts to resemble the living room in the French apartment. I would have liked a little more as a backdrop but overall it did not detract from the performance.

In conclusion a very well produced and enjoyable show with some excellent individual performances.  

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