Review: Plaza Suite starring Matthew Broderick and Sarah Jessica Parker
The Savoy Theatre, London ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
There’s something quite magical about seeing A-listers leave the comfort of the film or TV studio to return to their roots on the boards, a place where there’s no opportunity to ‘go again’.
Not that Matthew Broderick and Sarah Jessica Parker, opening in the transfer of their hit Broadway production of the American classic, Plaza Suite, have any need of a ‘Take 2’. Together they run with Neil Simon’s romantic comedy, delivering his snappy dialogue with priceless perfection while all the time slowly ramping up the physicality of their performances with hilarious results.
Boasting three plays in one, all the action of Plaza Suite takes place in Suite 719 of one of New York’s finest hotels. It’s 1968/69, making it a period piece, yet its observations on the human condition remain as true today as ever… even if attitudes have changed massively in the intervening decades. A snapshot of a New York City and a world that no longer exists, this production is a laugh out loud funny step back in time.
The piece captures three brief encounters, the couples in each played by real life man and wife, Broderick and Parker. Opening with Visitor from Mamaroneck, before even a word is uttered, the applause that greets Parker on her arrival is as spontaneous as it is welcoming. Likewise, when it’s Broderick’s turn, the reaction leaves no doubt that London loves having the star of ‘Ferris Bueller’ fame back on one of its stages after a break of five years.
And so it begins; the marriage of Karen and Sam Nash is suffering from the 23 year itch, or is it 24? Karen might be able talk for her State but getting workaholic husband Sam to do the same is impossible. They’re going through the motions in a partnership long past the first throes of passion. Spending their days bickering and apologising in equal measure, it’s a witty observation of a midlife crisis, the insecurities of ageing and the complexities of infidelity all wrapped up in that brash New York humour that pulls no punches.
Broderick’s Sam is the straight-man to Parker’s unexpectedly agile and very funny comic turn, his apparently laissez-faire approach as Sam complimenting her ever more overwrought Karen beautifully while building to a denouement that is as poignant as it is funny.
After the interval, any sense of holding back is quickly dispensed with in favour of good old fashioned farce. In Act II: Visitor From Hollywood, the still boyish-faced Broderick, resplendent in plaid flares and with a mop of period hair, is Jesse Kiplinger, a three times divorced Hollywood producer reunited briefly with his High School sweetheart, Muriel Tate, now a ‘scatty’ mother and wife longing for a taste of what could have been had they not split up.
As Kiplinger attempts to rekindle any attraction there may once have been over a drink or three, so the pair begin a hilarious ‘dance’ of desire and denial and as Broderick brings in the laughs with his antics so Parker’s increasingly zany Muriel matches him Vodka Fizz for Vodka Fizz. It may be a bittersweet tale but their chemistry sizzles.
By Act III: Visitor From Forest Hills, the farce is elevated to the most absurd levels with the arrival of mother and father of the bride Roy and Norma Hubley. Quickly, Broderick’s Roy becomes more and more histrionic as attempts to get his daughter, Mimi, out of the bathroom and ‘up the aisle’ verge on desperate. It’s clowning in the finest sense and brings a cartoon-like quality to the carry-on Parker and Broderick execute beautifully under John Benjamin Hickey’s adroit direction.
Eric Sirakian, Rohit Gokani and Charlie Oscar complete the cast, playing five supporting characters that each hold their own with the Hollywood leads.
Plaza Suite may be of its time but this production never fails to charm and, graced by the warmth of its stars, is guaranteed to be the hottest ticket in town. Real ‘Must See Theatre’ then, check into the Plaza Suite while you can.
Run ends 13 April, Tickets
