Quantcast

Mark Gatiss in The Recruiting Officer. Photo:  Johan Persson
Mark Gatiss in The Recruiting Officer. Photo: Johan Persson

The Recruiting Officer

Venue: Donmar Warehouse
Where: West End
Date Reviewed:

Related Content

Booking Tickets & Show Listings
The Recruiting Officer Listing Page
Internal Links
Max Stafford-Clark revives Our Country's Good, first show confirmed for new St James Theatre - 10th Apr 2012 news
Recruiting reflections - 15th Feb 2012 blog
1st Night Photos: Rourke's new Recruits party at Donmar - 15th Feb 2012 photos
Review Round-up: Rourke's Recruiting Officer opens at Donmar - 15th Feb 2012 roundup
Changing of the Guard: Josie Rourke at the Donmar Warehouse - 14th Feb 2012 interviews
Show Pics: Rourke Recruits Carroll, Crook & Gatiss for first outing - 13th Feb 2012 photos
Opening: Donmar Officer, Singin' in the Rain & WOS Awards - 13th Feb 2012 news
Tennyson, Hollingworth & Kestelman make Noise at Donmar - 3rd Feb 2012 news
Cast: Stewart-Jarrett in Arcola Disney, Officer, Master Class - 22nd Dec 2011 news


Reader Reviews


ScoreCommentDate
starstarstarstarThe first thing you notice on entering the Donmar is that the decorators have been in; the walls behind the stalls have gone and some of the seats now have floral cushion covers - the new female regime has already made an impression! We were sitting next to Joise Rourke at the WoS Awards Show and she seemed remarkably relaxed about following the legendary Michael Grandage, but she already knew her first production was a winner. The Recruiting Officer is a riotous Restoration comedy of press gangs, bogus fortune tellers, gender swaps and countless romantic triangles. It's completely bonkers and far funnier than She Stoops to Conquer at the National. A very starry cast are on top form with Aimee-Ffion Edwards, singing prettily as she did in Jerusalem, as a stunningly dopey and libidinous wench. Rachael Stirling seems to have picked up improvisational skills from her partner Oliver Chris (...Guvnors), ad libbing brilliantly when she spotted Katherine Parkinson in the second row. A quintet of actor musicians provide a range of English folk songs (as well as an hilarious mobile phone warning) and also a Journeys End style ending as we are reminded that these men have been press ganged into service as probable cannon fodder. That's rather a downbeat ending for a terrific and marvellously ridiculous show which makes for a great start to the reign of Good Queen Josie. - David Baxter30 Mar 12
starstarstarstarstarJust great fun with a fantastic ensemble. Nancy delightful as Sylvia, Rachael over the top as posh Melinda, Mackenzie brillliant as ambitious Kite supported by a great cast&musicians. - ELisabeth28 Feb 12
-Josie Rourke proves here that she can assemble a wonderful cast. For me, the production was entertaining, but never seemed to fully harness the immense talents of the cast, sparking most fully to life when Mark Gatiss and Aimee-Ffion Edwards were on stage. Gatiss' preening smiling fop and Edwards' husky dizzy lovelorn simpleton had me laughing continuously. Mackenzie Crook's stint as a phony fortune teller and sly recruiting officer was also inspired, as was Rachael Stirling's phony posh accent. 3 STARS. - steveatplays23 Feb 12
starstarstarstarI wasn’t very excited by Josie Rourke’s opening season at the Donmar, but I may have to eat a few words. Her opener is something the Donmar doesn’t normally do (restoration comedy) and it gets a handsome production with a full set of great performances. The theatre has had its biggest makeover since the 25th Putman County Spelling Bee. It has been turned into an 18th century playhouse with the stalls back wall removed, the circle railing replaced with a wooden one, wooden floors and (false) wooden ceiling, a painted back screen with candle holders and real lit candles, more real lit candles around the auditorium and three chandeliers, also with real lit candles! Lucy Osbornes’ setting is warm, welcoming and gorgeous, as are the period costumes. George Farquhar’s comedy takes place in Tewksbury where two army captains are recruiting using all means, fair and foul. Both have designs on different local girls, Sylvia and Melinda – who also has the attentions of local businessman Worthy. The girls fall out and Sylvia returns disguised as a man, Wilful, who both captains seek to recruit. Captain Plumes’s Sargent Kite plumbs new depths of deception, there’s a lot of confusion but it all ends happily – except for the recruits. It’s a comedy but it does make a serious point about the treatment of recruits and ends with a powerful statement as they head for the war. In addition to the lovely design, the use of music is terrific. The jigs and reels played brilliantly by five of the actors add much – including a delicious twist on the ‘turn off you mobiles’ advice now common at the start of plays. The performances too are terrific, with Nancy Carroll and Rachel Stirling as Sylvia and Melinda shining and Tobias Menzies commanding the stage with great authority as Captain Plume. Mark Gattis’ excellent comic turn as Captain Brazen suggests we need to see as much of him on stage as we already do his League of Gentlemen colleagues Reece Shearsmith and Steve Pemberton. The other two leads, Nicholas Burns as Worthy and Mackenzie Crook as Sargent Kite, complete an excellent set of leads and the supporting cast of eight are all excellent. Somehow though it didn’t add up to the sum of the parts; the first half in particular was uneven and didn’t sweep you away anywhere near as much as the second half did. I don’t know whether this is the play or the production. It’s not the complete delight the NT’s She Stoops to Conquer is, but it’s still an impressive start to the Rourke reign. Don’t wear too many clothes though, as for some reason the Donmar is set at sauna level temperatures. - Gareth James22 Feb 12
starstarA wall's been knocked down and the seats are covered in chintz....oh a woman must have taken over at the Donmar. The fabric is vile and the lack of wall makes the actors shout to be heard, I hope both are temporary measures. As for the show, I agree with rds but not for quite the same reasons. The play really dragged but mainly due to the miscasting of comedians who can't act and some actors who can't keep up. The set looked like a theme pub. - coral17 Feb 12


Write a Review
Give us your opinion on this production, give it a score (1 is low) and a comment
Score:
Comment:
Name:
Required, will appear on website
Email:
Required, will not appear on website
Confirm: Please type in
Please enter this number > SEVENTY-EIGHT < Just the two digits only, without any spaces.

Free Newsletter

Subscribe to our free newsletter


Featured Video

Twitter

Featured Editor's Picks

Infographic: The economic impact of Arts & Culture in the UK
When Culture Secretary Maria Miller called for the arts to make their "economic case" for subsidy, t...

Bonnie WrightPlays Cast: Harry Potter star in Southwark Moment, more for Branagh's Macbeth
Bonnie Wright, best known for playing Ginny Weasley in the Harry Potter films, will make her stage d...

Ben Turner as Amir & Farshid Rokey as Hassan in <i>The Kite Runner</i>. Photo by Robert DayBrief Encounter with ... The Kite Runner's Ben Turner
Ben Turner stars in the stage version of the bestselling book The Kite Runner, which runs at Liverpo...

Stephen Boxer as Titus AndronicusTitus Andronicus (RSC)
starstarstar
This latest production of Shakespeare's Titus Andronicus, to borrow from football punditry, is a p...

Regent's Park Open Air TheatreTake Five: Britain's outdoor theatres
With half-term approaching, the weather (hopefully) set to improve for the bank holiday weekend and ...

West End Live in actionWest End Live returns to Trafalgar Square next month
West End Live, a weekend of free entertainment from top London shows, will return to Trafalgar Squar...

Robert Sean Leonard as Atticus FinchRobert Sean Leonard: 'I carry the ghost of Gregory Peck on my shoulders'
Actor Robert Sean Leonard is currently playing Atticus Finch in Timothy Sheader's production of To K...

Robert Sean Leonard & Eleanor Worthing-CoxTo Kill A Mockingbird
starstarstarstar
Twenty years ago, a young Robert Sean Leonard appeared on the London stage with Alan Alda in...

X Factor musical titled I Can't Sing!, opens Palladium March 2014
The forthcoming X Factor musical will be called I Can't Sing! The Musical and will premiere at the L...

Tom Hiddleston. Photo: Dan WoollerDonmar stages Nick Payne premiere, Wesker's Roots & Tom Hiddleston in Coriolanus
The Donmar Warehouse has announced its new season, which features the premiere of Nick Payne's new p...
>> More Editor's Picks
>> Most Recent Stories
>> Most Popular Stories

Follow Us

Facebook Twitter Google Plus YouTube