We went on a Friday evening to see part of a preview run of this play/production, which went on to have a good long stint at the Aldwych and which had previously been tested at the Yvonne Arnaud Theatre in Guildford (according to my notes) and/ot Theatre Royal Bath according to the Theatricalia entry.
Anyway…
…I have always been partial to a bit of Simon Gray and also partial to a bit of Alan Bates’s acting and Harold Pinter’s directing, so this was a “must see” for me and Janie – hence the Friday evening booking.
Below is a rare review of the actual Richmond performances from the Ealing & Acton Gazette:
Life Support Ealing & Acton Gazette Tim Harrison 20 Jun 1997, Fri Ealing and Acton Gazette (Ealing, London, England) Newspapers.com
Below is a charming interview piece from the Guardian about the genesis of this play:
Life Support Simon Gray Claire Amitstead Guardian 26 Jul 1997, Sat The Guardian (London, Greater London, England) Newspapers.com
Nicholas de Jongh in The Standard didn’t much like the play when he saw it at The Aldwych:
Life Support de Jongh Standard 06 Aug 1997, Wed Evening Standard (London, Greater London, England) Newspapers.com
Whereas Suzannah Clapp liked it more in The Observer:
Life Support Clapp Observer 10 Aug 1997, Sun The Observer (London, Greater London, England) Newspapers.com
We voted it “good”, which is not great, but we did rate the piece and the performances highly enough.