Co-produced by the loved-by-me The Barn Theatre in Cirencester and the new-to-me The Theatre in Chipping Norton, this production of Jeeves and Wooster in Perfect Nonsense is set to travel in nearly fifty venues for the next four months.
Jeeves and Wooster are a well-known pair thanks to P.G Wodehouse’s novels, but this play allows you to see the characters in another light. The fourth wall is immediately down, and as you watch the three actors fumble with makeshift props and scenery, it’s easy to become more and more engaged.
Bertie Wooster (Matthew Cavendish) bumbles through, grinning at the audience in hopes they won’t notice the shambles of his ‘play’ he performs. He is held together by his butler Jeeves (Andrew Ashford) and fellow butler Seepings (Andrew Cullum) who whizz around him playing multiple characters each.
This production definitely took a little bit of time to settle down, but after the first few opening scenes you were sucked into the hilariously farcical and overcomplicated world of Jeeves and Woosters’ play within a play.
The set is sprinkled with random items to create sounds of keys jangling or doors clicking and makes for imaginative storytelling. The jokes and props crop up out of nowhere, keeping you engaged and giggling throughout.
A deliciously daft and enjoyable evening from two brilliant theatres who are collaborating to bring a fantastic production to regional theatres. Bravo to that!
Perfect Nonsense is a co-production of Chipping Norton Theatre and The Barn Theatre, Cirencester, and is on tour until May 31st – see jeevesandwooster.co.uk for details.