UK Theatre Network

I do mean to make love to Ford's
wife: I spy entertainment in her; she discourses,
she carves, she gives the leer of invitation: I
can construe the action of her familiar style; and
the hardest voice of her behavior, to be Englished
rightly, is, 'I am Sir John Falstaff's.'

It is said that Shakespeare wrote The Merry Wives of Windsor at the request of Queen Elizabeth I because she enjoyed the character of Falstaff in Henry IV Part I and Henry IV Part II so much that she wanted to see another play featuring the fat knight.  The Merry Wives of Windsor is a farce and relies heavily on mix-ups and slapstick. In this respect, the play resembles the format of a typical situation comedy. It even has the types of characters that appear in TV sitcoms: everyday middle-class people or suburbanites.

Director Christopher Luscombe went directly for this approach, emphasizing the sitcom elements of the play to make the characters more recognizable to an international audience. One finds a distinct affinity of the high strung Frank Ford to John Cleese’s Basil Fawlty of the TV series Fawlty Towers.  

Penniless once again, John Falstaff decides to fill his purse and to warm his heart by making love to the wives of two wealthy and highly esteemed Windsor citizens – Mistress Ford and Mistress Page. Appalled by his crude propositions the two women decide to have their revenge on Falstaff and to show him for what he is – a veritable ass. Meanwhile three suitors – the pompous Frenchman Dr. Caius, the young fool Slender and the romantic Fenton – are wooing the attractive daughter of Mistress Page.    

This delightful production is beautifully staged and a joy to watch. Actors and musicians are dressed in colourful Elizabethan costumes, the latter are prominently positioned on the roof top accompanying the action with Elizabethan melodies. The production is perfectly cast. Christopher Benjamin plays Falstaff with authority, wit and a certain dignity even when he is dressed in his most outlandish clothes to impress the ladies. Serena Evans and Sarah Woodward are gloriously funny as the two wives who turn back into giggling schoolgirls whilst plotting their revenge against the unfortunate knight. Andrew Havill is hilarious as the jealous Frank Ford and Philip Bird gives a wonderful performance as Dr. Caius. Sue Wallace portrays the meddling Mistress Quickly with wit and charm, and  Peter Gale is delightful as Robert Shallow, Esq. The final scene transforms the stage into a truly magical forest – a masque with song and dance.

The show runs until 4 December 2010 at the Richmond Theatre and will then proceed directly to Bath (6 to 11 December).

Richmond Theatre,The Green, Richmond, Surrey, TW9 1QJ
http://www.ambassadortickets.com/1754/659/Richmond/Richmond-Theatre/Shakespeare