Theatre Review: Beautiful House
Article published: Sunday, April 25th 2010
Few plays will try to marry the themes of ancient Egyptian mummification with the hostility of the housing market against a backdrop of terminal illness. Yet Beautiful House, the first theatre commission for Manchester-based playwright Cathy Crabb, shoehorns these vastly disparate ideas into a puzzlingly funny play.
Set in a Salford tower block, the story follows Ronnie and Bridgette who, for the sake of their now terminally ill daughter, have moved back into the flat she grew up in. Shortly after moving in, they find their neighbours Paula and Otis are not entirely as they first seem.
Overall, the small cast give accomplished performances. John Henshaw (Looking for Eric) offers a particularly convincing father and husband dealing with the impending loss of his daughter. Janice Connolly, a mainstay of the Manchester comedy circuit, plays Bridgette. Her characterisation is robust but at points veers towards the farcical.
Sally Carmen (Shameless) gets the most laughs and her energy often carries the action, although she never quite manages to shake off her Channel 4 alter-ego. Otis, played by James Foster, is a likeable character but certain motifs begin to grate with repetition and seem slightly patronising of the working class male he attempts to typify. Perhaps here the casting is slightly off, as a younger actor would have been more believable.
The script is sharp, however; well paced with some genuine laughs intercut with touchingly true scenes in which the central characters attempt to relate through their incompatible ways of dealing with grief. The various layers and themes add gravity to the off-stage death of the daughter.
Yet a major problem with the play is that it is simply too hard to see how the idea of the Egyptian “beautiful house” – where embalmed organs are kept for use in the afterlife – connects with the struggles of a family trying to get onto the housing ladder.
The mood swings wildly from comedy to grief in the second half and the audience is left wondering when they should be laughing. While this may be a comment on our reaction to loss, from the perspective of the audience it is jarring.
The play is still worth watching and for theatre-goers especially it is interesting to see the talents emerging from the fringe scene.
Samantha Bradley
Beautiful House is at The Library Theatre until 8 May.
Tickets cost £11-13, concessions available.
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