It should be fun to see how Citizen’s Theatre Artistic Director Dominic Hill handles this 1920s comedy from the poisoned pen of arch agitator Noel Coward. The riotous farce is a tilt at the distractions egotistic artistes create in order to avoid the painful truth of reality. Coward spears the emptiness and pretension of the bohemian classes as a naff after-dinner parlour game spirals out of control.
Set in the eccentric Bliss family’s rural retreat the action features a puffed up retired actress, a novelist and two young people who get lost in a mad game of flirt and counter-flirt as they embroil their guests in a frenzy of theatrical swoons and accusations.
The sprightly performance is a co-production between the Citizens Theatre and the Royal Lyceum Edinburgh.
Royal Lyceum Edinburgh: March 10 – April 1
Citizens Theatre Glasgow: April 5 – April 22