Stage review: The Merry Wives

If there is a Shakespearean role which is tailormade for Barrie Rutter, it is the lovable rogue Falstaff. A side character in Henry IV Part I, in The Merry Wives (Northern Broadsides have dropped the '˜of Windsor' for obvious reasons) he '“ and Rutter '“ take centre stage.
By The Newsroom
Published 3rd Mar 2016, 18:39 BST
Updated 4th Mar 2016, 13:11 BST

Down on his luck and running out of funds, Falstaff attempts to woo a couple of wealthy married women in the hope they may satisfy his various needs.

Needless to say his plans unravel in Shakespeare’s precursor to the bedroom farce. Broadsides make it all look so easy and while Rutter, as always commands the stage, his performance doesn’t suffocate the rest of the cast.

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From Becky Hindley and Nicola Sanders as Mistress Ford and Page, who undo the self-deluded Falstaff to Jos Vantyler as the gloriously camp Abraham Slender, this is a company which can deliver comedy with a deft hand.

The production is about to go on tour, but there is always something special about seeing it in Broadsides’ home at The Viaduct in Halifax. Yes, you might have to dodge a few props on the way to your seat and yes, on a cold winter’s night watching theatre in an old mill building can be a little draughty, but it also shows you that good Shakespeare isn’t about expensive sets and plush seats, it’s about delivery and direction.

Next year, will be Broadsides’ 25th anniversary. The celebrations will be big and on the evidence of The Merry Wives, it would appear Rutter and his team just get better with age.

To March 5 then touring –Hulll Truck, March 8 to 12; West Yorkshire Playhouse, Leeds, April 6 to 16; Stephen Joseph Theatre, Scarborough, April 2o to 30.

Sarah Freeman