It has become fashionable for directors to take classic plays and, rather than trusting the text that has delighted for decades or, in this case, over a century and a quarter, adapt works with the intention of improving them.
That is exactly what Max Webster has attempted in this revival of The Importance of Being Earnest, which played on the National’s Lyttelton stage from November 2024 until January 2025.
Productions of this type polarise audiences and, clearly, many at the performance recorded for National Theatre Live were delighted to see a starry cast led by Doctor Who, Ncuti Gatwa, in the role of Algernon Moncrieff, Sharon D Clarke portraying Lady Bracknell with a somewhat incongruous Caribbean accent and Hugh Skinner as earnest Jack Worthing.
A louche opening masque led by a transvestite pianist proved to be a relatively accurate harbinger of what was to follow.
Although Rae Smith’s settings within a Victorian proscenium arch and spectacular costumes were of the original period, enhanced with almost cartoon-like colour, everything else, such as the nose stud worn by Ronkẹ Adékọluẹ́jọ́ playing Gwendolen, was ultramodern, including a series of textual interpolations.
Webster has chosen to interpret the play as a breathless farce, asking his leading men to go heavily camp, to the point where the duo would have been better suited with each other than the young ladies they pursued.
He also played down much of Wilde’s glorious comedic language and aphorisms, instead concentrating hard on physical gags, asking all of the actors to primp and pose as well as flirt with the audience.
Sharon D Clarke is certainly an imposing Lady Bracknell, tyrannical with that strong accent amplified by a desire to shout her lines, a trait which became infectious as first Hugh Skinner and then the remainder of the cast followed suit.
The young women were turned into caricatures, Gwendolen a frightening vamp and Cecily an innocent schoolgirl seductress.
In a production that was so far over-the-top, sanity almost prevailed in the form of Amanda Lawrence playing Miss Prism, although she, too, eventually succumbed to excess in the climactic revelation scene.
Quite what Oscar Wilde would have made of this will never be known, but while traditionalists might hanker for the good old days when his plays were performed straight (if you’ll pardon the expression), lovers of modern reworkings of the greats (and fans of the stars) might well spend the best part of two and three-quarter hours including an interval rolling in the aisles.
The Importance of Being Earnest is currently playing in cinemas until 15 May and, no doubt, will soon be available through National Theatre at Home.