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"He is simply a phenomenon, and one that is unlikely to occur ever again in theatre history"—Terence Rattigan
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This first volume in the Coward Collection contains four plays written within a two year period when Coward and the century were still in their 20s. The volume is introduced by Sheridan Morley, Coward's first biographer. Hay Fever, a comedy of bad manners, concerns a weekend with friends of the Bliss family, who have all been invited independently for a weekend at their country house near Maidenhead. The Vortex was a controversial drama in its time, introducing drug-addiction onto the stage at a time when alcoholism was barely mentioned. Fallen Angels, which is written for two star actresses was described as 'degenerate', 'vile', 'obscene', 'shocking' - the second half of the play is entirely taken up with an alcoholic duologue between the two women. Easy Virtue is an elegant, laconic tribute to a lost world of drawing-room dramas, no other writer went more directly to the jugular of that moralistic, tight-lipped but fundamentally hypocritical 20s society. "He is simply a phenomenon, and one that is unlikely to occur ever again in theatre history" Terence Rattigan
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
A great selection of plays written by this clever, clever man while still in his early twenties. They range from the progressively surreal farce "Hay Fever", in which an arty family invite guests to a weekend of confusing party games and emotional humiliation, to the much darker "The Vortex", considered very shocking in its day. The latter was recently revived in the West End with Felicity Kendall as the domineering, self-deluding mother who takes young lovers and has a somewhat histrionic showdown with her wayward son. There is also the delightfully silly "Fallen Angels", in which two female friends become drunken enemies fighting over a Frenchman from their "past". (The twist in Act Three still packs a fair frisson.) The finest of the four plays is probably "Easy Virtue", an exquisite piece of writing, so subtle in its observation of a marriage going awry. It was recently (freely) adapted into a film, which, although nicely cast and retaining some of the spirit of the original, was spoilt with unnecessary additions. Read the original: it really is magnificent.
6 of 8 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
What I liked about these plays was how lively and fresh they were. Although very much period pieces of their time there is nothing really dated about them. The It Girls, nice-but-dim blokes, camp-as-Christmas chaps, middle-aged women trying desperately to cling onto their youth, and, at the other end of the scale, self-righteous old harridans revolted by anything to do with sex are still around us today (I liked the fact that people were making jokes about the "Daily Mail" even back in the 1920s!). "Hay Fever" and "Fallen Angels" are farces, and great fun. I particularly liked the part of "Fallen Angels" where Julia and Jane get steadily smashed on champagne whilst waiting for an elusive Frenchman to turn up. "Easy Virtue" too is a farce, but slightly darker, as a Woman With A Past is in danger of being ripped apart by her younger husband's insufferably pious family. The part where she lays into his unbearably moral sister should have modern audiences cheering as much as it would have struck a chord with audiences back then. "The Vortex" is different to the others. It isn't a comedy at all. In it a drug-addict and repressed homosexual finally confronts his feckless mother (who is paranoid about getting old) about what she has done to her family with her promiscuous ways. You have to do a lot of reading between the lines with this one, but Coward pushed it as far as he was able to at the time. The ending is bleak but highly effective. We live in a time which in some ways is very similar to the era these plays were set in, so I can only say there should be more Noel Coward revivals!
Format:Paperback
If you've never read or seen a Noel Coward play, then this is the starting point for you. Four short and fairly light - though arguably deceptively light - plays and a nice potted history and bigraphy at the beginning. Easy to read, no wrestling with alien concepts or experimental styles, and to coin a phrase, even as scripts they make a 'right riveting read'. In these plays we see the middle classes in private - trying to keep their equilibrium and trying to remain up to the minute as they struggle with everyday life of the pre-war world. Lots of drinking, plotting, arguing and smoking, with just the merest suggestions of something naughty going on behind the scenes, these plays are definitely worth a couple of hours with a cup of tea, or possibly a cocktail!
And the connection between Noel Coward and The Smiths? Charles Hawtrey of course!
And the connection between Noel Coward and The Smiths? Charles Hawtrey of course!
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