Arriving at the Theatre with just enough time to take our seats we hurried to find them. Situated near centre on the front row of the Royal Circle we had a good view of the stage.
The set is very minimalist, the stage, which has been adapted to look like a widescreen, is painted completely white with nothing but a heart-shaped balloon dangling from the ceiling. After one false start the play gets underway to Jamie Cullum’s version of ‘It Had To Be You’. The screen in front of the stage closes and projected onto it is the first of the ‘how we met’ clips which feature at the start of the film. These clips are used quite cleverly throughout the play to facilitate each scene change.
The screen re-opens to find the empty stage, though still minimalist, now features a sofa and Alyson Hannigan and the show begins
The transition from screen to stage has been made surprisingly well, while some scenes had to be altered for practical reasons and the timeline has been changed to bring events more up to date, the dialogue is much the same and the essence and comedy of the film have been maintained. Having only ever seen both actors on film (this being Hannigan’s first venture onto the stage) I was intrigued to see how they fared on the boards. Perry was the surprise for me, having little or no expectations of him I was impressed by how natural he appeared on stage. Alyson was the girl I was waiting to be impressed by and, although she did not disappoint, it was clear that this is her first stint on stage.
This being the second time I have seen the performance I did note how she had improved over her time at the Theatre Royal, although she does tend to shout rather than project her voice, her acting was more natural and less stilted than previously. With time and experience, I believe Alyson will prove to us that she is as good a stage actor as she is on screen.
Although the other parts were very minor and the majority of the audience were quite obviously there to gawp at Perry and Hannigan, a great and comical performance was put in by the more incidental characters. Two scenes in particular spring to mind, the gym scene and the bar scene. In both these scenes the incidental characters have no lines; however, their facial expressions alone bring out the biggest laughs.
The much awaited ‘orgasm’ scene was not quite as over-the-top as Meg Ryan’s performance, but nevertheless a good
effort from Hannigan with a nice twist on the ‘I’ll have what she’s having’ line.
Speaking of the audience, as already mentioned, I would guess that ninety per cent of them were Buffy fans, eight per cent Perry fans and the remaining two per cent genuine theatregoers. It being a Friday night and the penultimate show, had the audience in high spirits resulting in much applause and cheering between each scene. It remains to be seen whether the show’s success will continue when new actors, Molly Ringwald and Michael Landes take over the main parts. Personally, I hope it does as David Boreanaz is rumoured to be taking on the part of Harry if the show runs on after September.
Cider 31/05/04
