Don't Dress for Dinner

Those who enjoyed Boeing-Boeing in Adelaide earlier this year should feel right at home with the Rep's production of Don't Dress for Dinner. There may be others who find playwright Camoletti's style to be a bit on the mouldy side these days, but some terrific performers - and a director who clearly knows the territory - do their utmost to dust it off and juice it up.

There is a rather bracing balance of deception being carried on by the protagonists of this play; namely, both halves of a married couple conducting secret affairs of their own – but each likely to come undone on an evening when the lovers are both due to pay a visit…

Norm Caddick directs the proceedings with solid craftsmanship and a swift pace, though there are times when the basic material seemingly can’t help but feel a tad tired and creaky. On the definite plus side, Caddick has cast two exceptionally fine actors as the cheating couple; Peter Davies and Georgia Stockham both do a sterling job, bright and sharp and engaging.

Tim Taylor reprises his Boeing role of Robert, and the character’s return is a most welcome one; Taylor is very much at home here, bringing a generally spirited sense of gentle clowning to his scenes (though a climactic attempt at an explanatory monologue felt flatter than it should have been). Rose Vallen presents a delightfully charming characterisation of caterer Suzette, while Caryn Rogers has physical presence in the role of Suzanne, but the unexplained inconsistency of her accent proves unhelpfully distracting. Stuart Pearce’s George capably rounds out the cast.

In a year that has seen a number of strong comedic productions around the Adelaide amateur scene, Don’t Dress for Dinner may not be the most impressive that this reviewer has experienced, but it is predominantly a delight, and one worth catching.

Anthony Vawser