On Tuesday 19th March 2024, I watched The School for Scandal, the Sheridan play from 1777 performed by a distinguished troupe of actors at the Devonshire Park Theatre in Eastbourne. It was joyous.
It’s a comedy of manners bordering on farce. Sir Peter Teazle is an old man constantly bickering with his young wife whose taste for ‘the fashion’ has her rubbing shoulders with scandal-monger supremo Lady Sneerwell who is intriguing with the outwardly respectable Joseph Sneerwell to get him to marry heiress Maria (Sir Peter’s ward) although Maria really loves Joseph’s brother Charles who has the reputation of a debt-ridden playboy and wants to have an affair with Lady Teazle. Meanwhile Charles and Joseph’s rich (and heirless) uncle Sir Oliver is returning from the East and wishes to test their characters to decide whether to leave his money to them. There are wonderful set pieces such as the matrimonial bickering of Sir Peter and his wife, and the scene in which Charles sells his family portraits to Sir Oliver (thinking Sir O is a moneylender). But the climax is a brilliant farce in which Lady Teazle visits Joseph ... and then her husband arrives so that she has to hide behind a screen (he catches a glimpse of her and Joseph passes her off as a ‘French milliner’) and then Charles arrives so Sir Peter hides in the closet so that Joseph can get Charles to confess to having an affair with Lady Teazle (as Sir Peter suspects) but (of course) Charles drops Joseph in it as well ... and then both concealed Teazels are revealed. This was perfect farce.
Some of my fellow audience members had some difficulty keeping up with the multiplicity of characters (fifteen, played by eight cast members) and the quick-fire verbal comedy. Eighteenth century humour isn’t always easy to translate. But, in my view, the actors more than made up for the audience missing a few punchlines by the brilliance of their physical comedy. Ayesha Griffiths might have had little scope when playing Maria, a goody goody ‘straight’ role, but excelled as wide boy ‘Weasel’ the moneylender (and thank goodness this part was reinterpreted from its original anti-semitic trope). Lydea Perkins was delightfully perverse as Lady Teazle and wonderful as the grotesque Mrs Candour. Garmon Rhys was great as Charles but his portrayal of Backbite was the pure soul of farce. Guy Dennys didn’t have much opportunity as either Rowley or Snake but cleverly added a subtle moment of metatheatre when, as Rowley, discarding Snake's toothpick prop.
This is a classic comedy and the brilliant performances created an evening of pure theatrical joy.
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