Despite Family Album being Alan Ayckbourn’s 87th piece of theatre and the venerable playwright now having passed his 83rd birthday, there is no sign of the grand old man of British theatre losing his touch yet.
This latest gem to drop out of Ayckbourn’s imagination is a mix of comedy and poignancy that illustrates the changing roles of men and women in society in a thought-provoking way.
The tale of three generations of women from one family who have all lived in the same house would, in the hands of many, produced a play that showed the linear movement from 1952 to 2022 and taking in a disastrous children’s party in 1992. Not so with Mr Ayckbourn.
The characters from the three different eras move on and off the stage at regular intervals often interrupting the action but leaving the other characters oblivious to their presence. Once the audience member has risen to that challenge and recognised that the inter-changing time periods are signalled by a change in the lighting, the viewer can sit back and wallow in a piece of perfect theatre that, for many, allows – often disturbing – memories to be refreshed.
The play begins with Peggy Stanton (Georgia Burnell) and her husband John (Antony Eden) moving in to their first home together. Peggy exhibits the first buds of feminism by wanting the best for her daughter Sandy (Frances Marshall) who clearly has the potential to be a high-flyer but her husband still retains the notion of male dominance in a household.
It is John who decides where the furniture is to be placed and he flatly refuses to contemplate the idea of his daughter attending university placing all of his efforts behind his less-talented son. As they reminisce, it is clear that the couple had once been a devil-may-care pair but with his condescending tone towards his wife and his eagerness to play golf with the top brass at his warehouse the marriage has descended into a dull affair. Peggy is unable to put up the resistance required to make a change and settles back into a life of cleaning and balancing the precarious domestic books.
The loser is Sandy, who makes her first appearance as she is attempting to host a 10th birthday party for her daughter Alison (Elizabeth Boag) that is rapidly descending into chaos. While trying to cope with the mayhem, Sandy is desperately phoning her wayward husband to come home from what she believes is a lovers’ tryst. Sandy is in dire need of support as her marriage approaches its inevitable finale. With age taking its toll on her mother’s mental health, Sandy has no one to turn to for help. As her life unravels and she descends into a hell of drugs and booze, the audience warms to an excellent performance by Boag but realises that the outcome will not be good for someone who potentially had a very bright future.
It is up to Alison and her partner Jess (Tanya-Loretta Dee) to tie up the loose threads as the skeletons tumble out of the cupboards. What was the family’s view of John and how would he react to women taking over his domain? Why did the young guests go wild at Sandy’s birthday? What happened to Sandy? All is revealed. And if anyone is unconvinced that family life has changed beyond imagination over the last seven decades then the scene involving the carving set should dispel any doubts.
There is a gorgeous symmetry to the play which is beautifully and convincingly acted. It begins with an empty stage and ends with the same empty space. The dialogue begins with “Hello room” and ends with “Goodbye room”. We can relish saying hello to another lovely piece of theatre from Alan Ayckbourn and hope that we will not be saying goodbye to his talent anytime soon.
The production has a running time of two hours including interval and continues until October 22nd. For ticket information contact 01782 717962 or tickets@newvictheatre.org.uk
