Writer: Mike Leigh
Director: Michael Cabot
Abigail is throwing a party, but we’re not invited. Instead, the audience becomes a fly on the wall in Beverly and Laurence’s 1970s living room. Cheese and pineapple sticks, an endless collection of records, cigarettes and copious amounts of alcohol mean that their own party is about to begin and this one is better.
As teenage shenanigans unfold down the road at the other party, this one has all the hallmarks of an evening which is teetering on the brink of marital explosion. The play begins as we are introduced to Beverly – played superbly by Rebecca Birch – and her husband Laurence (Tom Richardson) but we quickly discover their marriage is full of hostility and tension. There is no time for this to be visible to their neighbours though, as Angela and Tony have just moved in down the road and there’s point scoring to be had. The hosts do their best to appear superior and of a higher class, with Angela’s consistent enthusiasm showing little to no offence as Beverly takes aim with her relentless digs. Despite Tony’s huge stature, he has clearly been dragged along kicking and screaming to this neighbourly get-together and his bluntness throughout brings many a laugh for the audience.
Alice De-Warrenne plays the role of Angela with a frivolous and light-hearted manner to which the audience immediately feels attracted. Her character is so innocent and giddy that she becomes blind to much of what is unfolding around her. George Readshaw as Tony complements Angela’s personality well: that the two have such contrasting personalities for a married couple only adds to the cocktail of drama and tension that later emerges.
As the drinks continue pouring, Abigail’s mother Sue arrives, and the dread on her expression suggests she could list a million places she would rather be. Jo Castleton portrays Sue with the timidity you would expect of a mother kicked out of her own house by her 15-year-old daughter for a speaker-blowing party. Ironically the events that unfold at Beverly’s dinner party are more awkward and dramatic than what is happening down the road.
The more booze consumed, the more painful honesty is used as ammunition. The masks slip off and true personalities come to the fore. Almost the entirety of what happens in the play is a depiction of class battles with little action beside the addictive nature of seeing how contrasting people behave around one another in a closed environment. It is no wonder reality television remains so popular, and no wonder that Abigail’s Party is still considered a timeless classic. Of course, this play has a much deeper meaning and as director Michael Cabot alludes says, this is “a ruthless examination of middle-class values and pretensions”. The play had instant success in 1977 with the recognisable Alison Steadman playing Beverly. Decades later this production by London Classic Theatre carries forward many of these themes which are still starkly relevant in the way that people behave today.
Yet, despite carrying a serious message, this is a night at the theatre that will leave you beaming from ear to ear.
Runs until: 18 March 2023 and on tour
