The Butler
Regent Theatre
Friday, October 15
Bennett is a thoughtful, intelligent writer and a good talker who speaks with as much passion and fun as he puts into his newspaper columns.
Circuses are usually marvellous physical spectacles that don't tax your brain.
So the idea of Bennett's wry words mating with the agile athletes of the Loons Circus Company is intriguing long before you get to see their offspring, The Butler.
Hence the good keen crowd that turned out last night, some fashionably dressed, most sadly late, all full of high expectations.
Did The Butler deliver?
Emphatically yes, but perhaps unsurprisingly, this is a show with a split personality.
There are feats of circus derring-do, with juggling, aerials, fire, poise, balance, buffed bodies and polished timing and that's just the first 15 minutes.
Once that's out of the way we can get on with the story of the endless dance of dinner, where the eternal big questions of life may be discussed as long as one sticks to society's rules.
It's a mix of literary reference and farce, but the physical comedy is so impressive and fast-paced that the over-long pauses in between drag in comparison, particularly in the first half.
But the many moments of superb theatricality easily make up for uneven momentum, and the tremendous talents of the Loons are unquestionable.
As for social comment, high society is a huge target, and although Bennett's well-aimed bullets are beautifully crafted, this production uses a blunderbuss to fire them.
So, split personality? Yes.
Worth seeing at the weekend? Definitely.
- Nigel Zega
