The program notes refer to this quote from George Bernard Shaw:- “It is by jingling the bells of a jester’s cap that I have made people listen to me…All genuine intellectual work is humorous.”
With ARMS AND THE MAN (1894) Shaw has his jester’s cap on and is in top form, And, as always, he has turned up with plenty to say and we take it all in as the laughs and good humour keep flowing.
For this play Shaw coats his strong views in a love story:- As the Serbo-Bulgarian War of 1885 rages, the lovely Raina (Andrea Demetriades) is engaged to the gallant and posturing war hero Sergius (Charlie Cousins).
When a fugitive Swiss soldier, Bluntschli (Mitchell Butel), abruptly lands in her bedroom, he initially seems threatening. But he quickly reveals he’d prioritise chocolate bullets over real ones any day and Raina, against her will, finds herself falling in love.
The love story and the many other plot strands play out as Shaw busily hammers away at what he has come to say…
This is, in essence, a very confronting play, with the playwright stripping away a lot of illusions held by the then late nineteenth century audiences. Prime amongst these illusions:- the nobility, honour and glory of battle, the pretentiousness and facades surrounding romantic love and conventional marriage, and the illusion of class difference, that the upper class people were so much more responsible, practical and superior than their working class counterparts….Not surprisingly, his audiences, at the time, found these notions very difficult to deal with..
Richard Cottrell’s current revival at the Drama Theatre is a delight in every respect. This ARMS AND THE MAN is gorgeous to look at- Michael Scott-Mitchell’s revolve set revealing the inside and outside aspects to the Petkoff mansion is a great creation and has a stunning visual impact. A particular highglight was the tall, thin conifer trees that have been stylised in icy lace fretwork.
Julie Lynch’s intricate period costumes impressed with the women wearing bustles and trains and sashaying in peacock refined style dresses, and the men wearing frivolous, gold braid, regimental style garb.
The cast are great, making the most of playing these well drawn characters, and delivering confident, relaxed performances. A gorgeous Andrea Demetriades and a very impish Mitchell Butel are great in the leads. Deborah Kennedy plays Andrea’s very socially conscious mother. Charlie Cousins and William Zappa do good work as the two Majors, and Olivia Rose and Brandon Burke are the two house servants with Olivia’s willful character determined to rise above her station in life.
There was a lot of very physically based comic acting and this is what I enjoyed and took away most from this production. There is a scene where Mitchell Butel as the totally worn out Swiss military officer splays all across the stage, desperately trying to keep awake and await Andrea’s character’s return, that is simply hilarious and akin to vintage Jim Carrey.
This is a show to savour- one of the highlights of the year. George Bernard Shaw’s ARMS AND THE MAN opened at the Drama Theatre, Sydney Opera House on Friday 18th September and is playing until Saturday 31st October.
Cast: Brandon Burke, Mitchell Butel, Charlie Cousins, Andrea Demetriades, Deborah Kennedy, Jason Kos, Oliver Rose, William Zappa
Director: Richard Cottrell. Set Designer: Michael Scott-Mitchell. Costume Designer: Julie Lynch. Lighting Designer: Damien Cooper. Sound Designer: Jeremy Silver.