That Good Night

This was a thought-provoking, unusual play, dealing with a rather delicate end of life subject, but with humour, despite the darkness concealed therein.

The set was good – the backcloth invoking a country villa in Italy, which was both well-appointed and scenic.  However, I felt the actual props in respect of making the garden look lived in were rather lacking – the garden chairs and tables were nicely set to enable the characters to use them well, but there was nothing much personal about, or things on the tables to create a bit of interest.  I felt it needed something, as it looked a little stark.

Lighting was good, the almost imperceptible move from daylight to twilight and other effects worked well.

As always, we had no problem hearing the actors, their projection was good throughout, without the use of mics, always a plus!

The music and readings from relevant sources really enhanced the feel of the piece, as did the birdsong at the start of the scenes.

Costumes were good for the ladies – Debbie looked really elegant in both her outfits, and Anna looked very much the European lady casually dressed as befitted her lifestyle.  Ralph and Michael were both subject of the linen look for men – however The Visitor looked very debonair in his smarter lightweight suit – so although there were items of wear that did not sit well with me from an aesthetic point of view, the whole conjured up the ethos of the characters.

I liked the use of Abi Longland as the non-speaking housekeeper, to facilitate the required scene changes, and to allow for costume changes, it kept the feel of the play, without too much intrusion.

Sarah Leadbetter as Anna gave us a well-studied performance as the wife of an irascible man – I liked her half accent, it gave the flavour of the character without being too pointed, and the words flowed well.  Sarah has very expressive eyes which she uses well on stage, I was particularly taken by her gaze when she spoke the final line of the play.   

Malcolm Hobbs played well as Anna’s husband Ralph, he got the character really well, and carried the lines off as if he was speaking his own thoughts for the first time.  I felt he was perhaps a little too matter of fact with The Visitor, but loved the shock value of his apparent demise and then waking up.  His later collapse was well done, as was the attention from Anna and Michael to try to revive Ralph.

Michael, Ralph’s son, was played well by Steve Leadbetter – very clear in his intention.  However, I felt that he was perhaps a little too deliberate in his speech pattern, against the more natural flow of Ralph and Anna.  I liked the way he cared for Debbie when she was reacting to Ralph, and the gradual warming to his father.

Julie Gough played the elegant Debbie, not afraid to stand up to Ralph, who to all intents and purposes was to become her father in law.  She accomplished this with a slightly sarcastic, ironic approach, which sat well against the other characters.

I was a little perturbed about the sudden appearance of The Visitor, played with admirable detachment by Bruce King.  The fact that he was basically an end of life advisor and facilitator made his calm rather detached manner the more chilling in a way.  However I felt he was a little too static, which made what he said sometimes seem stilted, I wanted him to be a little more determined at times.

A strong cast, who delivered a good script well.

© NODA CIO. All rights reserved.