Meet the Churchills
Lynn Freeman
Meet the Churchills
Directed by Ross Jolly
Circa Theatre, to July 16
Reviewed by Lynn Freeman
POWER, privilege and wealth are no guarantee of happiness. Just look at the Churchills.
New Zealand playwright Paul Baker brings together Sir Winston, two of his most troublesome children and his loving but caustic wife for the statesman’s 88th birthday. The guest of honour is yearning for death on one hand while also threatening to stand for parliament again. While he can quote from his autobiography which is now seen as a whitewash, here he acknowledges and grieves for the “nation of orphans and widows” the man labeled as a ‘war lover’ created. These contradictions, and Winston’s rapier wit, make him fascinating still.
But even in the 1960s he was a Victorian anachronism, and Baker emphasizes, that by inviting to the dinner party a young historian, dressed in the latest Beatles style, to challenge the Churchill spin on history.
Now it must be said that Baker is spoilt for choice in terms of the material he has to draw on, with the Churchills writing prolifically about themselves, and writing about them by others. The constant laughter through the play comes mainly from classic Churchillian phrases from all four of these razor sharp tongues. What makes it much more than a list of quotable quotes, is turning this into what Clementine calls a ‘mending day’, where the four can tell truths held secret and apologise for bad behaviour. At this gathering you come to care for these brilliant but damaged individuals.
We also care for them because of the way they are brought back to life by Ray Henwood (Winston), Helen Moulder (Clemmy), Jeff Kingsford-Brown (Randolph) and Carmel McGlone (Sarah). Henwood’s finely judged Winston is irascible, tired beyond measure but still sharp. Moulder is supremely good as the dutiful but frustrated wife. As the errant children, Kingsford-Brown captures Randolph’s appalling temper and rudeness while also giving us glimpses of the blight he suffered being the son and grandson of famous men. We embrace Sarah’s wildness because of McGlone’s portrayal of a woman desperate for love and determination not to spend her life trying to please a dead father – a reference to her appalling paternal grandfather. An unrecognisable Byron Coll is engaging as the young historian with his own agenda.
Jolly’s casting and on-stage direction are right on the money and is perfectly complemented by John Hodgkins’ set with its references to the family and wartime, Phillip Dexter’s effective lighting design, and excellent costuming by Gillie Coxill.
Directed by Ross Jolly
Circa Theatre, to July 16
Reviewed by Lynn Freeman
POWER, privilege and wealth are no guarantee of happiness. Just look at the Churchills.
New Zealand playwright Paul Baker brings together Sir Winston, two of his most troublesome children and his loving but caustic wife for the statesman’s 88th birthday. The guest of honour is yearning for death on one hand while also threatening to stand for parliament again. While he can quote from his autobiography which is now seen as a whitewash, here he acknowledges and grieves for the “nation of orphans and widows” the man labeled as a ‘war lover’ created. These contradictions, and Winston’s rapier wit, make him fascinating still.
But even in the 1960s he was a Victorian anachronism, and Baker emphasizes, that by inviting to the dinner party a young historian, dressed in the latest Beatles style, to challenge the Churchill spin on history.
Now it must be said that Baker is spoilt for choice in terms of the material he has to draw on, with the Churchills writing prolifically about themselves, and writing about them by others. The constant laughter through the play comes mainly from classic Churchillian phrases from all four of these razor sharp tongues. What makes it much more than a list of quotable quotes, is turning this into what Clementine calls a ‘mending day’, where the four can tell truths held secret and apologise for bad behaviour. At this gathering you come to care for these brilliant but damaged individuals.
We also care for them because of the way they are brought back to life by Ray Henwood (Winston), Helen Moulder (Clemmy), Jeff Kingsford-Brown (Randolph) and Carmel McGlone (Sarah). Henwood’s finely judged Winston is irascible, tired beyond measure but still sharp. Moulder is supremely good as the dutiful but frustrated wife. As the errant children, Kingsford-Brown captures Randolph’s appalling temper and rudeness while also giving us glimpses of the blight he suffered being the son and grandson of famous men. We embrace Sarah’s wildness because of McGlone’s portrayal of a woman desperate for love and determination not to spend her life trying to please a dead father – a reference to her appalling paternal grandfather. An unrecognisable Byron Coll is engaging as the young historian with his own agenda.
Jolly’s casting and on-stage direction are right on the money and is perfectly complemented by John Hodgkins’ set with its references to the family and wartime, Phillip Dexter’s effective lighting design, and excellent costuming by Gillie Coxill.
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