Outside society is changing beyond recognition following the Second World War.
But in The Count’s crumbling country house triviality is to be taken seriously as he prepares for a grand party – the centrepiece of which is a performance of Marivaux’s La Double Inconstance.
Dressed in 18th century costumes the cast’s lives are similarly locked in a time warp of boredom and petty intrigue.
Edward Bennett is outstanding as Hero, a dissolute rakish drunk with a long-hidden secret, while Niamh Cusack’s Countess captures the essence of an indolent privileged woman who has never had to work for anything.
She combines beautifully with Katherine Kingsley’s Hortensia, the Count’s mistress, resembling a pair of wicked step-sisters when Jamie Glover’s spoiled but charismatic Count starts a below-stairs dalliance with innocent governess Lucile (Gabrielle Dempsey).
The Rehearsal begins as a play of snide side-glances and beautifully weighted comic lines.
But in the second half Jeremy Sams - directing his own translation - ramps up the tension, particularly in Hero’s intense and almost painful scene seducing Lucile in her bedroom.
Even Joseph Arkley’s excellent comic relief as Villebosse, the Countess’s dim-witted lover desperate to start rehearsing, takes on a darker hue as the play progresses.
The intimacy of the Minerva allows the subtlety of the play to shine through, and the skill of the ensemble cast to be fully appreciated, as their infighting begins to have serious consequences.
Four stars
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