Peter Viney's Blog

By Willy Russell
Directed by Matthew Dunster

Duke of York’s Theatre
St Matin’s Lane, London

Thursday 27 April 2023

19.30

Sheridan Smith as Shirley Valentine

It was before the reviews started here, but we first saw Sheridan Smith in Little Shop of Horrors, in one of her first starring roles. She was fabulous, and award winning. Then we watched her in Gavin & Stacey, and thought her role as Cilla Black in Cilla was the best ‘biopic’ performance we’ve ever seen. The singing made it better than her role as Mrs Biggs. I like Quentin Letts’ review of Shirley Valentine in The Sunday Times. He mentioned her as Titania in Michael Grandage’s production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream. It’s our favourite play and we have often chatted about the best we’ve seen in each role. Lucy Briggs-Owen at the RSC wins Helena easily. Bottom? David Troughton for the RSC in John Caird’s version? Christopher Logan for Headlong? Pearce Quigley at The Globe in 2013? Whatever, Sheridan Smith always gets the Titania role.

It is, as written, a one woman show. It was first performed in 1986, pre-dating the film. The theatre was packed. A lot of ‘girls night out’ pairs and groups. Every seat had a ‘scan for champagne’ sticker. You get used to glasses, but a lot had a whole bottle and a glass. While they have renewed the loos, it’s still another horrible old West End Theatre. Still, it worked for this.

Full marks for set design too. The kitchen is Act One was realised in every detail. She broke eggs into a frying pan and produced fried eggs- I don’t necessarily assume they were the same eggs, as you can’t see into the pan, She constantly used the stuff in the kitchen, moving all the time, wiping surfaces, opening cupboards, running taps. Cupboards opened to reveal what we keep in kitchen cupboards. The domesticity was hammered home brilliantly.

As we knew, she is an incredibly charismatic and likeable, or loveable, stage presence. The whole play is breaking the fourth wall. Everyone felt she was talking directly to them too. It’s a great skill. Several times I felt she was talking straight to me. I’ll bet everyone in the stalls imagined the same. I watched how carefully she spread eye contact around.

She created every character she discussed, Joe, her husband; her son, Brian; Millandra, her returning daughter; Marjorie the posh girl who her school teachers loved; her neighbour, Gillian; Jane who accompanied her to Greece; Jeanette and Dougie, the couple who insisted she join them in the hotel restaurant; Kostos the sexy taverna owner. She was in her Liverpool accent from Cilla and Benidorm mainly. She could switch to all the other accents, male or female.

in Act two, she is in Greece, on the beach. She now has a tan. I assume tights had whitened her legs in Act one, and her arms were covered. However, `I reckon she needed the interval to tan her face.

Willie Russell’s text is superb writing. It is presented without any paragraphs at all in the play text. So much so that it’s hard to read. The pausing and emphasis Sheridan Smith adds is an essential. I’d assume a degree of ad-libbing as with any first rank comedy actor. It’s life-affirming. Everyone left smiling. The good vibe was universal.

Instant standing ovation. Massive applause. That can only be 5 stars

*****

The only criticism is a very poor programme. I bought the programme and play text with the current cover. Together that was £18. I’d expected £14 to £15 as normal. but there is no price on either. All the professional bio stuff is in the play text. There is nothing added. No director or actor comments. No production history. Nothing on play v film. Buy the play text, avoid the programme.

WHAT THE CRITICS SAID

five stars
Quentin Letts, Sunday Times *****
Jessie Thompson, The Independent *****

Four stars
Arifa Akbar, The Guardian ****
Andrzej Lukowski, Time Out ****

Three star
Nick Curtis, The Standard ***
Sam Marlowe, The Stage ***

LINKS ON THIS BLOG

SHERIDAN SMITH
Funny Girl, Menier Chocolate Factory, 2016
A Midsummer Night’s Dream – Michael Grandage Company, 2013, Titania

MATTHEW DUNSTER (Director)
True West, by Sam Shephard, West End, 2018
A Very Very Very Dark Matter, Martin McDonagh, Bridge Theatre 2018
Much Ado About Nothing, Globe, 2017
Plastic, by Marius von Mayenberg,  Bath, 2017
Imogen (Cymbeline Renamed and Reclaimed) – Globe 2016
Hangmen, by Martin McDonagh, Royal Court 2015
Love’s Sacrifice by John Ford, RSC 2015