The Duenna

Synopsis

A classic comedy of confused identities and plots that make sure the wrong matches turn into the right weddings. Don Jerome is determined that his daughter will marry Isaac Mendoza, but she wants Antonio as her husband. With the assistance of her elderly duenna, some coincidences and a few catastrophes even Don Jerome finally gives in to the humour of his own defeat.

Our Review:

Anne Morley-Priestman - 4 November 2010

We’re not meant to take Michael Barker-Caven’s production of Sheridan’s play The Duenna at face value. It’s the 18th century equivalent of a 20th century musical comedy and as such involved the participation of more than just a couple of creators; the musical numbers come fresh or in arrangement from the Linleys (Sheridan’s father- and brother-in-law) and other popular contemporary sources. They are all tuneful, if not particularly memorable out of this context.

The setting by Adam Wiltshire is a flexible one, on several levels and involving skeleton doors, house-fronts and interior rooms. During the overture we are introduced to the players – think Hogarth’s painting of Actors in a Barn – with a masked manipulator of situations and the singer who will play only simple confidents but in compensation is furnished with the loveliest music. Then it’s straight into the amorous entanglements of two sets of young l...

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