Perfect Nonsense
DIRECTOR: Steven Stead
CAST: Graham Hopkins, Jonathan Roxmouth, Robert Fridjhon
VENUE: Theatre on the Bay
UNTIL1: November 8
RATING: ****
PERFECT Nonsense and perfect whimsy result in an evening of perfect entertainment which keeps the audience in a more or less continuous state of mirth as Messrs Jeeves and Wooster, assisted by a butler named Seppings, re-enact an intricate drama evolving at Totleigh Towers.
The three bring a plethora of characters to the stage, most sporting unlikely names only the English seem able to perpetrate, from the newt-addicted Gussie Fink-Nottle to the forceful Aunt Dahlia. They gravitate around two desirable but elusive objects, a silver cow-creamer and a leather notebook. The former is prized by antique collectors, the latter by those who know the value of incriminating material. As such, their possession is hotly contested.
PG Wodehouse’s wry, articulate humour is deftly captured in this compact dramatisation of what was a novel of substantial length, the adaptation of which has been effected by the UK-based Goodale Brothers.
With such a script, skilful direction from Steven Stead, and actors mustering the collective calibre of Graham Hopkins (Jeeves), Jonathan Roxmouth (Wooster) and Robert Fridjhon (Seppings), it is no surprise that highly engaging theatre is generated to hold audience attention for some 90 minutes.
The staging is a feat in itself as the action shifts from various places in London to the country seat of Totleigh Towers. Greg King’s simple but efficient design converts one interior into another with remarkable speed, and a dexterity which Jeeves himself could admire and emulate.
Best of all is the versatility of the cast, with one tour de force after another. A highlight is the simultaneous portrayal of two characters by one actor (Hopkins), with one half of his person attired as a young woman, the other as her father.
Verisimilitude has no place here, and much of the show’s appeal comes from frequent reminders that young Wooster and two butlers are presenting a re-enactment; every now and then Wooster interrupts the action with comments of joy. “I say, Jeeves, that was jolly good, what?” or “There’s really not much to acting, is there?”
Hopkins excels as the imperturbable gentleman’s personal gentleman, with boyish brio from the enthusiastic Roxmouth, ideal as Wooster. Fridjhon’s tongue-in-cheek impersonations provide exactly the right foil for the leads.
The production is as impeccable as one would expect from any enterprise involving the likes of Jeeves; Mr Wodehouse would surely have approved of the small liberties taken with his oeuvre, what?