As a long standing admirer of Neil LaBute I must admit to finding some of his more recent plays a bit disappointing so it is with a mixture of relief and pleasure to report that Reasons to be Pretty is a triumphant return to form. Actually it's quite a radical departure for LaBute as it features three out of four characters who are drawn with a previously missing empathy and sympathy, although he can't quite bring himself to deliver the happy ending that the second half seems to be leading to. Foremost is Greg, initially the boyfriend responsible for crass remarks about his girlfriend's "regular" appearance, but given a hugely likeable performance by Tom Burke, even if he is a highly improbable blue collar warehouseman. Equally good are Sian Brooke, thankfully now completely without the Brummie accent, as the emotionally vulnerable Steph and Kieran Bew as the more traditional LaBute misogynist. Billie Piper is also excellent as Carly, gradually becoming aware of her status as a trophy wife with a limited shelf-life for the odious Kent, but I would worry about her emotional state as she appeared to be genuinely upset at the curtain call. Soutra Gilmour's container set is initially clever but the lengthy scene changes become increasingly ponderous and tedious. Reasons to be Pretty may not have anything startlingly new to say about relationships but it delivers in great style and is probably LaBute's best play since The State of Things. - David Baxter
08 Dec 11
Well, persisting with playwright Neil LaBute has paid off at last. I’ve seen a handful of his plays before now, but never really found them particularly satisfying; too cynical for my taste. Until now, the worst of them was Mercy Seat and the best The Shape of Things & Fat Pig and this play continues his reflections on our obsession with appearance that the latter two started, but for me it’s on another level altogether….and how refreshing to have a play with ‘blue collar’ characters and a warehouse setting!
The play starts with a brilliantly staged row over something Greg is alleged to have said about his partner Steph, relayed by her friend Carly. Carly is pregnant (a late change to accommodate Billie Piper’s actual pregnancy!) by Greg’s work colleague and friend Kent. The subsequent unfolding of these relationships is absolutely fascinating and completely captivating. There is extraordinary depth to the characterisation, an authenticity to the story and brilliantly realistic dialogue. I haven’t felt so involved in a story for some time.
I’m often in awe of an actor’s talent and here I’m in awe of all four of them. You really feel for Tom Burke’s Greg, caught up in his girlfriend’s insecurities and his friend’s infidelities. Bille Piper is terrific as Carly, starting as the source of Greg & Steph’s conflict and ending as a victim. Kieran Bew has the difficult task of playing the deeply unsympathetic Kent, so the fact you want to get on stage and punch him is a tribute to how well he does. Steph’s emotional rollercoaster is beautifully played by Sian Brooke.
Soutra Gilmour’s settings in and around a container convey the workplace at the heart of the play but allow scenes to move to three other locations speedily, with the scene changes themselves very watchable. Michael Attenborough’s fine attention to detail serves the play very well in a sensitive production without a wasted moment.
So the Almeida ends 2011 as it began it – with a fine new play that will join Becky Shaw in the list of the very best new plays of the year. A veritable sky full of gold stars. - Gareth James
01 Dec 11
Not a great play but clever dialogue, fine performances and neat staging. The premiss of the play is that the offhand comment by the guy that his girlfriend is 'ugly' ends their relationship and changes their lives irreparably. Very hard to put much credence in that because 1) it is never clear that he meant to say it and 2)Sian Brooke (playing the girl) is so beautiful that she could not credibly have depended on his opinion for her identity. It might have worked better if the two girls had swapped roles. I can see Billie Piper as more vulnerable to the accusation of being ugly. Nevertheless an entertaining two hours even if it is forgettable. - Clive Sollish
23 Nov 11
Having enjoyed both Shape of Things and Fat Pig previously, I was eagerly awaiting Neil LaBute's conclusion to his "appearances" trilogy, and this is the best of the three. It is so because it allows us to perceive the vulnerability in all four of the characters (even Kieran Bew's monstrous misanthrope, Kent), a dimension that certainly was not present in Shape of Things, and to a degree in Fat Pig. Unexpectedly, for a play by such a generally caustic writer, I was moved to tears at the depth of emotional honesty and the sheer confusion experienced by the characters. Kudos to the 2 casting directors of this production, as all four players are pitch perfect. Tom Burke, who appears to be a "regular" looking version of Robert Pattinson, is the key to this production's success, as his laconic demeanour and precise timing makes the most of every line, and he is undoubtedly the lead character. Sian Brooke's violent abrasive over-sensitive Steph is initially unrecognisable from her recent career-making turn as a subdued romance-depleted depressive in Mike Leigh's Ecstasy, but the deep sensitivity she displays in the close of this production is heartbreaking. Billie Piper is a revelation also, as her judgemental Carly's smugness comes apart at the seems. While at the start of his trilogy, in Shape of Things, Neil LaBute seemed acerbically full of himself, the trilogy concludes with what amounts to a confession that nobody can truly control anything, and that we are all desperately lost. - steveatplays
