A Man For All Seasons by Robert Bolt

Everyone feels they know the play; I can remember studying it for Higher English, for example. And of course there’s the film in which Paul Scofield made the role of More his own.

But in Dougal Lee’s portrayal of the man, we see a loved and loving man, a cultured man with a sense of humour. Lee gives him flesh and bones. Who could fail to be moved by the scene in which More and his wife Alice, played by Karen Davies, part for the final time at The Tower of London?

You might think Thomas and Alice an unlikely match but, in this scene, there is no doubting their deep and abiding love for one another (see picture). Kezia Burrows plays More’s clever and adored daughter, Margaret, with grace and charm. Hywel Morgan as Henry VIII is attractive and scary in turn.

Dennis Conlon as The Common Man, narrates the play, injecting it with humour and keeping the spirits up when things are bleak. He gives a very entertaining performance.

Edward Lipscomb’s set is stark but perfectly evocative, assisted by Jeanine Davies’s lighting.

If A Man For All Seasons sets the standard for PFT 2005, we’re in for a treat this summer.

Things We Do For Love by Alan Ayckbourn

SECOND up in PFT’s 2005 season is Alan Ayckbourn’s Things We Do For Love. Essentially a comedy, as with most Ayckbourn plays, there’s more to it than its ability to make you laugh. It has a dark side, as well . .

Ken Harrison’s glorious and clever set features sections of the basement, ground and first floor flats at 56, Bloom Street, SW London. The property belongs to Barbara, who lives alone, renting out the attic and basement to augment her income from PA-ing to a successful writer. Her basement tenant, the turgid but useful Gilbert, is doing some minor repair work to the attic flat, in readiness for Barbara’s school friend Nikki and her fiance to rent while their own home is being renovated.

The scene is set for love, lust and acrimony!

Barbara is a prickly cactus of a woman, keeping everyone at arms’ length, presumably to avoid being hurt. She appears to harbour feelings for her boss, which are unrequited. She seems unaware of Gilbert’s devotion to her. Enter Nikki: pretty, not very bright, and an old school friend of Barbara. Nikki has been abused by men in the past but is certain that Hamish is different. He’s The One.

Jacqueline Dutoit makes Barbara completely unsympathetic; so when she and Hamish fall into each others’ arms, having previously hated one another, even a purely sexual attraction between them is hard to believe. That said, some of the physical nature of their interplay is quite disturbing, and must leave Miss Dutoit and Dougal Lee (Hamish) exhausted. Fight Director Raymond Short took the actors through their paces for this.

Helen Logan is splendid as poor, betrayed Nikki, and she gets to wear the best costumes! Richard Addison as basement-dweller Gilbert (pictured with Jacqueline Detoit as Barabra) is the source of much of the play’s comedy moments and is genuinely funny, but even then, Ayckbourn doesn’t let us off, as we see the forms Gilbert’s devotion to Barbara take on.

I am a great fan of Ayckbourn but I wouldn’t say this was a favourite play. That said, the set is quite wonderful (I’d like to live in Barbara’s flat) and there are some very funny moments, as well as the bleak ones. The play tries to end on an upbeat note but I’m afraid I remain unconvinced.