I have taken this headline from a review, by Lynn Venhaus, of Private Lives at The Rep, St Louis, in October 2022, because it perfectly encapsulates what we thought about the play when I saw it with a friend, on Tuesday 4 November.
We arrived at the theatre at 7 pm for a 7.30 pm performance. The foyer was buzzing; the audience wide ranging in both age and style. As we slowly moved into the auditorium for the performance, the murmur of anticipation building, I took note of the set design. Decked out in Art Deco style, a pallet of green and orange was complimented by striking lighting and two bistro tables set on opposite sides of a line, imaginatively created with light. In Act two the set was transformed by a sumptuous combination of velvet drapes and paintwork in a vibrant orange, complimented by a period gramophone, telephone and period furniture. The chaise longue, presumably a stand in for a bed was a clever touch and was to provide a gently suggestive setting for Amanda and Elyot’s ‘lovemaking’.
The soundtrack, often the same track repeated endlessly, invoked the period beautifully and seemed to echo the hopelessness of two people who were about to repeat the destructive pattern of their previous relationship. The costumes were exquisite Elyot and Victor looked ‘dapper’, an old fashioned word, but one that works in the context. Their beautiful tailoring was offset by gorgeous two-tone brogues as they moved effortlessly from day to evening wear. Amanda and Sibyl oozed wealth and glamour in equally beautiful tailoring and fabulous evening dress. Even Amanda and Elyot in pyjamas looked sophisticated and stylish. The only jarring notes were the wigs worn by Amanda and Sibyl, which were frankly hideous.
The plot and dialogue
The plotline is based on two newly married couples who turn up at the hotel only to find that the partners they divorced have married each other. The scene is set for confusion and chaos, the audience expecting whip sharp dialogue, acerbic social comment and an element of sophisticated comedy. After all it is Noel Coward. Too often however it descends into a Brian Rix style farce before becoming increasingly dark, not helped by a bizarre dance scene with Amanda and Elyot and an interlude for coffee, neither of which made any sense. Noel Coward’s lightness of touch was lost and the whole thing felt hopelessly dated and forced, surely the cast were not enjoying themselves and although there was some laughter from the audience it was generally subdued. The sharp dialogue we’d been expecting became increasingly nasty, malevolent and endlessly repetitive as the characters traded ever more extreme insults. Elyot became verbally and physically abusive towards Amanda, relishing his ability to inflict serious pain on her. Sibyl painted as an empty-headed, silly young woman was hopelessly outmanoeuvred and manipulated by Amanda and Elyot who took a disturbing pleasure in taunting her. Victor, who at the beginning had seemed like a bumbling, but thoughtful man, who worshipped Sibyl ended the evening by verbally attacking her, before they came to blows. The level of physical and verbal violence presented by all four characters was deeply unpleasant to watch and any sense of comedy and sophistication was lost.
In discussing the play on the way home my friend and I agreed that we did not find it sophisticated or remotely funny, we were not amused in the least, rather we were left wondering why anyone would possibly want to revive Private Lives. Perhaps Lynn Venhaus best sums up our feelings when she says: “If this was a modern play, the entitlement and mistreatment would have everyone outraged, but here, we should accept it because it has the warm glow of nostalgia and it is written by a theatre legend?” Both entitlement and mistreatment still exist, people still find themselves in toxic, violent relationships and these things should be explored in theatre and discussed openly and honestly, but this dated and vacuous play is not the vehicle to do that.
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