Honour - Park Theatre

[Dr Tom]

A rather good play, which I hadn’t seen before.

Saw the second preview. Staged in the round with minimal set and props. Very fluid.

I sat front row upper circle. Not recommended as you lose one third of the stage due to the railing. But everyone was audible and it’s a small theatre. That type of seating where you share a fold down bench with a buddy.

Haven’t seen the previous incarnations but this has had various modern references included, such as Twitter and Brexit references. It’s a four handed, almost all scenes with two of the cast asking the question “what happens when a man leaves his wife for a younger model?”

Very watchable, with Henry Goodman and Katie Brayben particularly standing out.

Pretty full tonight so expect this will sell well.

[showgirl]

Glad to read this as I'm seeing it soon. Having (I think) fallen asleep during the NT version c 9 years ago, I'm hoping at least to stay awake this time! And though I'm more likely (albeit rarely) not to go to something because of a cast member, I do like Imogen Stubbs and Henry Goodman is usually worth seeing, too.

Having once sat in the circle at the Park, never again, and the same for any similar small theatre such as the Orange Tree. It's not necessarily that you can't see everything - though I appreciate that in the above case this is an issue - I would never do so again, as I don't like that sense of seeing heads more than faces.

[showgirl]

Well, after seeing this again (most of it - it was as hard the second time as the first to stay awake throughout, and that's not a comment on the production or performances), I have to conclude that I don't think this is a very good play.

I can't fault the acting and in the first scene Henry Goodman has to deliver some very repetitive lines which vary only slightly, as he's thinking aloud, so these must have been hard even to learn, never mind to invest with varying nuance, but he pulls it off. Yet though the set-up is familiar (long-term relationship challenged by one partner straying, which isn't a spoiler as the blurb says this much), I didn't find the way it developed either satisfying or convincing and the rather abrupt and inconclusive ending may be realistic but left me with too many questions.