Theatre Review: Brief Encounter at Theatre by the Lake, Keswick

Noel Coward’s Brief Encounter adapted by Emma Rice

By Ken Powell

I have a love/hate relationship with Noel Coward. Much of his work, I feel, hasn’t dated well. Hi characters can be simplistic and overly melodramatic. That’s rather true of the two main characters to Brief Encounter who, despite the unlikeness of it, fall in love over a series of meetings at a train station café. For much of the movie, I felt like they just needed someone to bang their heads together and tell them to stop behaving like hormone-raging teenagers.

That said, the David Lean film is a classic and there’s much to enjoy about the whole story, especially when thinking about the other characters which feature, let alone the cinematography which is exquisite. But how do you bring that to the stage? And how do you deal with a story which may have passed its sell-by date?

Enter Keswick’s Theatre by the Lake (TBTL) who do, so brilliantly, what they always do. Sometimes it is just a case of getting excellent actors to bring old characters to life. Sometimes it is the staging, lighting, sound that does the trick. Sometimes a complete reimagining of a classic is needed.

For this production, TBTL have done all three. It’s astounding, quite simply.

It is the staging which hits you first. You’d have to be blind not to notice that the main house has been completely transformed with the centre chairs taken out and placed where the stage would normally be. Apparently this has been done before at TBTL but I’ve not seen it. In their studio theatre, this is not unusual and it helps create an air of intimacy. To do it on the main stage was a brave thing to attempt. It was a bold move and it paid off. The effect was truly magical. (If you want to see how they did it, have a look at TBTL’s timelapse video here )

Brave too was to extend the importance of the ‘minor’ characters. Emma Rice’s adaptation gives us, in effect, not one but three romantic couples, all very different from each other. This helped detract from the melodrama of the main lovers – Laura (Anne-Marie Piazza) and Alec (Pete Ashmore). Indeed, at times I almost forgot the play is all about them. At the same time, the writing gives us greater understanding of the characters and why they behave how they do. This makes such a difference, lightening the mood and allowing us to just revel in the all the couples.

I don’t know how they get the quality of talent that they do but somehow TBTL get actors unlike those you see elsewhere. In recent times we’ve seen more collaborative work which has been rewarding for audiences and theatre alike. Here, the partnerships with Bolton’s Octagon Theatre and the Stephen Joseph Theatre has proven equally worthwhile. As a group, the actors are impressive yet approachable. They are interacting with the audience before the play begins, and there are moments where they do the same during too. Their music moments are wonderful, skilled and a joy to watch as well as listen.

A worthy favourite has to be Natasha Lewis, who plays the feisty Myrtle Bagot, the café owner, among other characters. To be able to act is a given, to dance and sing, pretty good, but when Natasha Lewis pulled out a trombone and started playing it like a pro, it was all getting a little ridiculously talented. Each actor got to demonstrate a range of skills but it was Lewis who stole the show as an individual.

In terms of couples, it is the young working class couple, Beryl and Stanley, played admirably by Lara Lewis and Joey Hickman, who stole my heart. They are just so beautifully wholesome and innocent – the complete antithesis of Laura and Alec. They deserve their own play.

While much of the action revolves around the main couple – and Piazza and Ashmore are perfect for those roles – perhaps the hardest working of all the actors was Robert Jackson who plays several important characters. He is at his funniest as Albert Godby, the ticket inspector who is forever after the amorous embraces of Myrtle Bagot, but it is his role as Fred, Laura’s gentle, unassuming husband, that I found was played with greatest empathy and understanding. I was moved by his portrayal of a man only hinting that he might well know what is going on yet will remain loyal throughout.

In short, this is a cracking play, superbly produced and beautifully acted. I may not still be convinced of Coward’s place in the repertoire of performances, but this production has everything you could ask for. It is a joy.

Brief Encounter is showing at Theatre by the Lake’s Main House until Saturday 8 Oct 2022. To find out more call the Box Office on 017687 74411 or visit www.theatrebythelake.com.