Honour

‘Honour’ by Joanna Murray-Smith is the latest production by the Black Swan Theatre Company at the Playhouse Theatre. Curtain up nightly at 7.30 pm until 4^th November.

Honor (Marcelle Schmitz) a self-sacrificing author, and her husband Gus (George Shevtsov) also an author (and English lecturer?) have been blissfully and uncomplicatedly married for more than thirty years. Honor is looking forward to sharing her husband’s new life in retirement. When Claudia (Renee McIntosh) a strong, ambitious, self-opinionated reporter comes to interview Gus, things change.

Despite Gus being more than twice her age, they start an affair. Along comes the well worn punch line, ‘I’ve found a younger woman!’

The immediate reaction of a potential audience member is ‘seen this type of show a million times – not interested!’ However Murray-Smith has managed to brilliantly depict the depths of feeling, the unstable logic of infatuation and the subsequent interaction of the characters. There is comedy, and a few gasps as chauvinistic and well-worn phrases are trotted out. This is not another Albee’s ‘Goat’, Honor tackles the whole situation quite differently.

Newcomer, the beautiful Clare Blumer is amazing as the daggy and insecure daughter, Sophie.

There are one or two passages which are both wordy and too complex in structure, thus slowing down the flow of the action, but this 95-minute play (no interval) with director Tom Gutteridge’s well recognised skills, manages to hold the audience’s attention and interest.

Yet another innovative set and costumes by Claude Marcos. Graham Walne’s lighting was subtle, selective and smoothly operated. The occasional, very low level synthesised music by Kingsley Reeve was well placed and effective.

Not everyone’s show. If you like action then you may find the character studies, despite the wonderful acting all around, a little wooden and slow. It was received MOST enthusiastically by the audience.