The Constant Wife Archives - North West End UK

2Apr

By Nazaret RaneaNo Comments

Scotland

The Constant Wife – Festival Theatre

On its opening night at the Festival Theatre, The Constant Wife felt less like a revival and more like a reminder of just how ahead of its time W. Somerset Maugham really was. Written in 1926, the play sits neatly in the world of drawing-room comedy, but beneath the polished dialogue and social niceties there is something far more unsettling. It asks what happens when a woman refuses to react in the way society expects. That tension is at the centre of this new version by Laura Wade, directed by Tamara Harvey for the Royal Shakespeare Company. Wade keeps the 1920s setting but softly reshapes the structure, bringing moments forward and adding a flashback that shows Constance discovering her husband’s affair. It is a small change, but an important one. It shifts her from someone who seems...

The Constant Wife – Liverpool Playhouse

Take a step back into the 1920s with the Constant Wife which is based on the original play by W. Somerset Maugham and has been creatively adapted and revived by award winning Laura Wade and directed by Tamara Harvey. Despite being written nearly a century ago, Wade has beautifully written the play to maintain its original class, themes and sophistication; however, the play still feels surprisingly modern. An exploration of marriage, independence, and social hypocrisy. Meet Constance Middleton (Kara Tointon), well kept, organised, controlled, poised and who glides around stage with grace. The perfect wife and mother. However, all is not what it seems. Be prepared for a brilliant and comedic tale filled with surprise, wit, laughter, intrigue and an array of characters with wonderfully con...

The Constant Wife – Swan Theatre

W. Somerset Maugham’s The Constant Wife, written and set nearly half a century after A Doll’s House, transforms Ibsen’s critiques of marriage into a sparkling 1920s comedy of manners. It’s hard not to compare with Ibsen’s masterpiece, but the purpose here is different: less a rallying cry, more a pragmatic question. What should you do if your perfect husband has an affair? The eponymous Constance is married to the right kind of man, with the right kind of job, in the right kind of house. Unfortunately, the man in question is having an affair with Constance’s best friend. By a stroke of (bad?) luck, Constance catches the two of them in the act - but decides to keep it to herself. Over the course of the next year, she hatches a plan to gain economic independence from her husband in secret...