Present Laughter Tickets
Noel Coward's Present Laughter returns to the London stage in a new revival starring Andrew Scott at the Old VicSuitable for ages 11+
Performance dates
17 June 2019 – 10 August 2019.
Run time: 2hr 30min (inc. 20min interval)
Includes interval
30 reviews
Top Rated Show
Reviewers highly rate this show
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‘This is Coward at his peak... the dialogue sparkles, the laughs come easily and Alex Jennings as Essendine holds the audience in the palm of his hand. A blissful night.' - Observer
'Terrific treats. A top-notch cast headed by an actor at the peak of his comic powers. Splendid performances all round. A singularly successful evening.' - Independent
At the centre of his own universe sits matinee idol Garry Essendine: suave, hedonistic and too old, says his wife, to be having numerous affairs. His line in harmless, infatuated debutantes is largely tolerated but playing closer to home is not. Just before he escapes on tour to Africa the full extent of his misdemeanours is discovered. And all hell breaks loose.
You have reached a moment in life when a little restraint would be becoming. You are no longer a debonair, irresponsible juvenile. You are an eminent man advancing, with every sign of reluctance, into middle age.
Noël Coward’s Present Laughter premiered in the early years of the Second World War just as such privileged lives were threatened with fundamental social change. Staged at the National for the first time, with Alex Jennings as Garry.
Content
Contains smoking (herbal cigarettes), latex balloons, and adult content.Special notes
Latecomers sitting in the Stalls will not be admitted until the interval.
Recent Reviews
Andrew Scott was just incredible. Funny and sad at the same time. You could feel the trauma and anxiety of his character. Brilliantly funny piece of work.
Absolutely brilliant! Andrew Scott was magnificent! Cried real tears of laughter!!
Brilliant!
Great show. Due to the refurbishment no toilets in the theatre were working - I really believe tickets should have been discounted as a result as this was hugely disruptive especially being on the second floor
I thought the play was excellent. A fresh take on Noel Coward's play with Andrew Scott captivating the audience as Garry Essendine and a fully supporting cast.
I must admit I was not familiar with this play but any anxieties I had were soon calmed by Andrew Scott’s appearance. High energy, laugh out loud, a farce to be reckoned with. Sheer bliss.
Wonderful classic play with a nice modern twist. Wonderful cast and one marvelous Andrew Scott
The play is one of the best comedies that I have ever seen put on in London, largely due to the incredible performance of Andrew Scott, but also a great supporting cast. The only thing that marred the evening is the terrible state of the Old Vic theatre during the current renovations. Whilst I appreciate that the works are long overdue, they seem to have been handled particularly badly, and the much lowered theatre experience was not reflected in lower ticket prices.
Despite playing someone who overacts, at no point did it feel like overacting. A thoughtful and provocative play which we thoroughly enjoyed
So funny and incredible performances !
One of the best and most enjoyable productions of a fantastically written play I have seen in years. The quality of the acting and dialogue were superb... the set simple but effective, the engagement with the audience excellent.
Fantastic play. Very well acted by all but Andrew Scott was the star!
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