Theatre Review: Beautiful Thing (Royal Exchange, Manchester)

Featured image: Tommy Vine (left) and Matthew Tennyson (right) as Ste and Jamie. Photograph: Jonathan Keenan. Courtesy of the Royal Exchange Theatre.

Rating: *****

On an estate in Thamesmead lives Jamie (Matthew Tennyson) and his mother, Sandra (Claire-Louise Cordwell). On one side of them lives loud-mouth Mama Cass obsessive, Leah (Tara Hodge), and on the other side, Ste (Tommy Vine), with his aggressive and violent family. From a potent mix of poverty and staunch values something beautiful starts to blossom between Jamie and Ste.

Jonathan Harvey’s epitome play was famously adapted into a film of the same name. Here in Manchester it gets a stunning revival at the spectacular in-the-round space of the Royal Exchange Theatre. Liz Ascroft’s set manages not only to convey the close-knit community of the high rise block of flats, but also the colour and playfulness of Harvey’s dialogue, whilst director Sarah Frankcom makes wonderful use of the enclave performance space, creating a wonderfully immersive and up close theatrical experience.

The play is a lot more confined than the film, with only Jamie, Sandra, Ste, Leah, and Sandra’s lover Tony (Alex Price) in the cast. The action is also solely kept to the balconies of the estate and Jamie’s bedroom, without any gallivanting around gay bars and parks as in the film. Yet there manages to be more depth and charm in the stage version, the outings away from their homes only suggested. Harvey had more room here to play about with a fuller narrative development, but it is his treatment of the text that really makes the original stage script shine brighter than the celebrated film. The sudden changes in mood and timbre tease out the trials and tribulations this quintet of characters face in coping with being poor, abuse, strong morals, and finding one’s own identities. At times the action can be incredibly touching, but then moments later quite intense, putting the audience through a real thrill-ride despite the slow but comfortably paced action.

As much as Harvey’s text is sharp and punchy, it is the performances that really drive this incarnation. Cordwell is our stand-out favourite. She is utterly believable as working single mum Sandra, joyously acting out the larger than life character to a T. Yet she never lets Sandra’s bodacious outlook dominate too much, and when her character’s guard is down there is a movingly frightened and hurt woman underneath. The same can be said of Hodge who also brings an electric cocksure confidence that Tameka Empson didn’t quite capture on celluloid.

Tennyson and Vine also have a sweet and innocent chemistry on stage. They’re incredibly cute and adorable as the couple they try to become and not at any point does either of their performances feel forced or uncomfortable. Together, they convey wonderfully the clumsiness of coming of age and coming out. Tennyson, in particular, has fantastic body language as Jamie, twitching and shifting in a perfect portrait of adolescent awkwardness.

All in all, this production isn’t just beautiful, it’s utterly gorgeous. An outright must-see and definitely worth travelling to experience this flawless and compelling feel-good show.

Beautiful Thing plays at the Royal Exchange Theatre, Manchester, M2 7DH, until 3 December 2011.Tickets are £12.50-£29 (concessions available). To book call 0161 833 9833 or visit www.royalexchange.org.uk.