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The Old Ladies review
Finborough theatre, LondonIrritable passions ferment beneath the frowsty knits and beads in atmospheric 1935 psychological thriller
TL;DR
- The play is a 1935 psychological thriller by Rodney Ackland, adapted from Hugh Walpole's novel.
- It centers on the lonely lives of three impoverished women in an English cathedral town.
- The characters experience irritable passions, spite, greed, nerves, and night terrors.
- Miss Beringer, a new lodger, is anxious and timid.
- Mrs. Amorest, another resident, struggles financially but maintains appearances.
- Agatha is portrayed as disconcertingly eccentric and mocks Miss Beringer.
- The play features cross-hatched conversations and melodramatic plotting.
- The production utilizes atmospheric set, costumes, and sound design to enhance the mood.
- The article notes that Ackland, Walpole, and the original director John Gielgud were queer artists, suggesting a potential interest in characters on the margins of society.