Our Country's Good
St James Theatre
Reviewed on Monday 4th February 2013 (Press Night)
"Australia, 1789. An ambitious young lieutenant, Ralph Clark, is set the task of directing newly arrived convicts in the Restoration comedy The Recruiting Officer in celebration of the King’s birthday. But with a dispirited cast, just two copies of the script, opposition from sadistic officers, a leading lady who faces the gallows, and Ralph’s uncontrollable passion for one of his convict players, Australia’s first theatre production is in trouble from the start."
Our Country's Good isn't simply a comedy and isn't simply a drama. Instead it is a complex historical play which manages to explore every human emotion. This faultless production feels much more at home in the stylish, modern St. James Theatre than when I previously saw the production during its UK tour.
I love that Our Country's Good has style. The cast play multiple roles, introduce several of the scenes and seamlessly take care of all scene changes. Despite that during one scene the women are playing men while still wearing skirts, as an audience we invest our imaginations and believe it. That the magic of theatre.
A stand out performance came from Kathryn O'Reilly as Liz Morden. At first she is utterly hilarious before exploring Liz's emotional side and giving a touching performance. Matthew Needham also provided many comic moments with his larger than life portrayal of Robert Sideway. The entire cast are strong, delivering scenes of both comedy and despair beautifully.
As well as being funny and touching I actually found Our Country's Good extremely interesting, it is an intriguing historical play. The show makes many political points; it's interesting how you feel more sympathy towards the convicts and end up strongly disliking many of the men in authority. While I loved every second of Our Country's Good I am aware it is certainly not for everyone. Many scenes are long and text heavy which some people could find tedious.
I would urge you to see this unmissable production of Our Country's Good. The show is complex and addresses a wide variety of issues. Timberlake Wertenbaker's play is filled with huge characters who you can't help but fall in love with. Once again Max Stafford-Clark has done a tremendous job at directing this truly special play.
Click here to read my five star review of Our Country's Good during its recent UK Tour.
Andrew Tomlins (Editor)
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