Review: THE GOVERNMENT INSPECTOR, Marylebone Theatre
Photo credit: Oliver King
In Myles’ pacy adaptation of the 188 year old Gogol play The Government Inspector, we are invited to a Northern English provincial town to guffaw along with this satirical farce, as the ensemble cast are hoodwinked, deceived and wooed by a master of ‘fake it ‘til you make it’ Percy Fopdoodle, convincingly played by Kiell Smith-Bynoe.
Swashprattle (Dan Skinner), the corrupt Governor is led to believe an inspector is on the way, and in a clunky case of mistaken identity, the privileged (with a side of cheeky chappy) Londoner Fopdoodle (Smith -Bynoe), a civil servant, is mistaken for the Government Inspector. A comedy of errors unfolds, with freeloading Fopdoodle taking full advantage of the ditzy councillors’ flaws and inadequacies to reap the rewards of their over-exuberant, misplaced hospitality.
Smith-Bynoe has great comic timing and wears the roll of Fopdoodle well, elevating every scene he is in. His two-handers with aide Fudgel (Daniel Muir) are really amusing and they have a great chemistry.
There are some elements which don’t come together quite as well, and whilst the motley crew of councillors are individually authentic in their roles, the group comedy skits could gel better. Though, there are lots of laughs to be had at a number of Vicar of Dibley-esque scenes.
Martha Howe-Douglas carries Mrs Swashprattle well and despite being tasked with delivering numerous old-fashioned panto-style lines about her daughter’s appearance (which wear thin after a while), provides a number of laughable moments with her snippy social-climbing mannerisms.
Sadly, this old-fashioned farce feels as relevant today as it was when first penned, as we observe overt corruption, bribery and influence at play by those who brandish the power, with little or no regard for those whom it impacts most. We aren’t asked to dwell on this for too long as the jokes keep coming until an aggressive breaking of the fourth wall towards the end of the play. This is shocking but perhaps not for all the right reasons, with the potentially thought-provoking message a little lost in a wave of shouty confusion.
The Government Inspector is fun, slapstick joy, with the cast’s over-exaggerated physical humour bringing the satirical writing to life. There are some hilarious one-liners and the Fawlty Towers-style absurdity of it all provides for an entertaining couple of hours, as we are invited to ponder the inference that we’ve been taken for fools by those in power for nearly 200 years, and are asked if we actually just laughing at ourselves?
*** Three stars
Reviewed by: Cara Brazier
The Government Inspector plays at Marylebone Theatre until 15 June, with further info here.