Reader Reviews
Harper Regan (Cottesloe (National Theatre), West End)
Back to Show Details| Score | Comment | Date |
 | I'd rather watch Emmerdale and I hate Emmerdale. I'm just thankful that I payed £5 for a standing ticket. This was utter rubbish....the writing was poor and the director needs to be sacked. Thanks for wasting 3 hours of my life. Don't see it. - Barry George | 07 Aug 08 |
| Excellent performances in a thought provoking play - who holds the power in the relationship between parent and child - does it mattter how many times we say "i Love you". Lesley Sharpe is astonishing and mesmeric. Worth a second view. - Ed | 11 Jul 08 |
| Excellent performances in a thought provoking play - who holds the power in the relationship between parent and child - does it mattter how many times we say "i Love you". Lesley Sharpe is astonishing and mesmeric. Worth a second view. - Ed | 11 Jul 08 |
| Oops - problems posting; should have been one-star and only got that because of the marginally less terrible scene with Harper's mother (Susan Brown). - David Baxter | 10 Jul 08 |
| Quite astonishingly awful and by far the worst thing I have ever seen at the National. Clearly in thrall to Pinter, Simon Stephens presents us with repellant character, a series of turgid and implausible scenes complete with completely unrealistic dialogue. If I thought about it a bit more perhaps it would make some sense or deliver a profound message but I really cannot be bothered. A complete waste of time and it has shaken my previous belief that Marianne Elliott can do no wrong. - David Baxter | 10 Jul 08 |
| The thinking playgoers night out. Disturbingly,dramatically stirring you to rethink your vslues truthfully, and be grateful for the good things available for your control if you can stay sane in this corrupt crazy deteriorating world. Brilliant witty perceptive writing,expert direction and acting,symbolic setchanges,sensitive lighting and sound. Compelling theatre. - ALEX GREEN | 01 Jun 08 |
| It’s a great idea and I have nothing but admiration for the writing, the staging and the performances of this piece. My problem with it is the implausibility of a couple of Harper’s encounters and the pace and length of the piece, which results in more being less. It could have been a lot better. - Gareth James | 16 May 08 |
| This isn't an easy play but it has a cumulative effect which is very rewarding. There are fantastic performances, Lesley Sharpe is wonderful and Nick Sidi is absolutely brilliant. Very moving. Just don't sit on the front row or you'll get a very sore neck... - Scal | 06 May 08 |
| oops, I pressed the wrong button -- I meant to give 5 stars. - LDE | 02 May 08 |
| I couldn't disagree more with those reviewers who thought the play was tosh. We went last night, and came out moved and thoughtful and keen to see it again. Sometimes when you've seen a really good play, it's hard to get it out of your mind the next day, and this is very much the case with Harper Regan. This bittersweet domestic drama documents what happens when the eponymous heroine Harper 'runs away' from her life, ostensibly to visit her dying father though it soon becomes apparent that her crisis involves much more than just that. The 'journey' she takes is in turns moving, shocking and revelatory. The confrontational scenes -- in particular the one with her mother -- are harrowing and finely wrought. The second half of the play is even more moving than the first, revealing the secret of her husband's 'misdemeanours' without judging. Harper attempts to reconcile reality, and human frailty, with her strong desire to keep her family together. The production itself was excellent, with the great Marianne Elliott's direction up to its usual high standards. Lesley Sharp as Harper was absolutely superb, conveying all the confusion, fury, love and humour of the character. Another standout was Jessica Raine as the spiky but lovable daughter Sarah; it's amazing to read in the programme that she hasn't even finished her studies at RADA. I suspect we'll be seeing a lot more of her in the future. In the hotel, with the unexpectedly kindly James, Harper says "I'm not really very in my body"; I think we all feel like that from time to time. I can see that this is not a play for everybody, and does not perhaps have a universal appeal. But it did it for me. - LDE | 02 May 08 |
| For those reviewers who left at the interval, you missed a magnificent play that came to life in the second half as the family relationships deepend and the rationale for Harper's semi-breakdown became clear. The confrontation scene between Harper and her mother is intensley moving and the final scene of the re-birth of the family is ultimatley uplifting. No question, Lesley Sharp is a star. She is on stage every minute of the play and whilst the other actors perform well, you just can't take your eyes away from Sharp. She has the ability to make the audience empathise with her, even at her most unattractive. I wonder whether the part was written for her. Ignore the naysayers, this is a 5 star evening. - Gazza | 02 May 08 |
| Dreadful! How our National Theatre can have the nerve to put this load of old shite on beggars belief. I think it must be time for dear ol' Nick Hytner to pack his bags and let someone else take over the artistic directorship. This was theatre that would put a person off theatre! Firstly, I guess blame has to go fairly and squarely to the writer, but even so the NT also deserve a bollocking for letting it get beyond a reading in the first place! This is the NT not the Royal Court or the Lyric Hammersmith. The NT must be more selective with new plays. It is this country's premier repertory house so of course try new things, but for god sake exercise some discretion over the material. The direction was diabolical too. The only thing positive I can say about it was it's over now! Oh! and the set, which was far too good for the play. There should be a society for the protection not only of audiences but of actors too and after tonight's showing it would have had an excellent recruitment drive. - rds | 01 May 08 |
| I am surprised by the comments below. I thought (as did my companion) that this was a great evening at the theatre, and every character was well-drawn by the author and well-acted. Maybe my expectations were lower but it held my attention from start to finish and I found a lot to relate to. Along with Happy Now it was exactly the sort of evening's entertainment I expect from a new play at the Cottesloe, and the sort of work I expect the RNT to be promoting. - Nick | 29 Apr 08 |
| A beautifully written play with a very dark heart. Great cast as well, and Lesley Sharp gives the performance of a career. From the comments below it's possibly a case of not 'one for everyone'. ALthough I think it genuinely is one of the best plays of the 2000s and will one day be judged as such. It really is fantastic writing... - Eve | 29 Apr 08 |
| The first half of this play is so boring that I was nodding off throughout. The second half though is much better and I stayed awake so I do advise that you see it through to the end as it does get better especially the scene with her mother. The highlight of the entire show is the set that really does work well throughout. This play would be better if it was shortened and there was no interval. Not one of the best at the National. - I.L.S | 25 Apr 08 |
| Great performances and fantastic sets but oh dear, what a dreary piece of BAD writing,which seemed to be heavily influenced by Mamet's Edmond but with a cod Chekhovian coda. - joesmith | 25 Apr 08 |
| I found this play to be moving and insightful. Beautifully acted throughout, with a standout performance from Lesley Sharpe that is not to be missed, the unfurling of the complexities of family life and love as well as internal struggles with guilt and doubt are sensitively handled and get beyond the cliche to something approaching truth. Excellent. - JJE | 25 Apr 08 |
| Awful play - we left at the interval too. Badly written, badly directed (might just work a bit better if it was all done at twice the pace). We followed a stream of people to the car park! Please can I give it NO STARS AT ALL! - PeterS | 22 Apr 08 |
| We've all come to expect a certain amount of quality and quality checking from the National before a play of such utter misery and just plain bad writing goes before a paying public. By my reckoning the NT owes me £54.00 - and owes the likes of Lesley Sharp a whole lot more. For the first hour of this "play" we sat in deathly silence while Harper Regan meets one miserable person after another - it doesn't help she's a bit of a downer herself. If we're supposed to empathise with this woman the writer has failed. Seeing someone of the cailibre of Lesley Sharp drowning in this sea of poorly written misery makes me wonder what on earth drew her to this poor production? Couldn't tell you what the second hour was like - the audience started to leave midway through the first hour the night I was there - and plenty more like me followed them at the interval. Words of advice to her, the cast and any potential audience - life's too short - stay away! - CliffG | 22 Apr 08 |
| The programme notes mention girl rock groups and aspects of living on London's outer fringes near the airport (some of the play takes place in Uxbridge) but it is difficult to see this reflected in the themes. It's seems more about dreams, disappointment and reality. The first half has a difficult script but the scenes after the interval are much better, especially with the mother, and realistic and one warms to the play. The name refers to the main character. - kilburncat | 17 Apr 08 |
