Theatre review: To Have and to Hold

PREVIEW DISCLAIMER: To Have and to Hold was meant to be well into its run by now, but following the cancellation of its preview period this is now a review of the second public performance.

So yes, a shaky start for the divisive Richard Bean's new comedy-drama To Have and to Hold; no official announcement has been made about why its opening was put back, but the show was originally slated to be directed by Richard Wilson, who's now credited as co-director with Terry Johnson. You can see why an octogenarian director might have been a good fit for a story revolving around a couple in their nineties: Jack (Alun Armstrong) and Florence (Marion Bailey) have lived in Wetwang in Yorkshire for 70 years of married life, and both their children have long since moved away. Now, with it becoming apparent that Jack at least is very ill and nearing the end, mystery novelist Rob (Christopher Fulford) and private medicine entrepreneur Tina (Hermione Gulliford) are visiting to convince their parents to sell the house, and move in with Tina's family where they can be looked after.

The elderly couple have been just about getting by with the help of their niece Pammy (Rachel Dale,) who does their shopping for them, and local handyman Eddie (Adrian Hood,) who collects their money from the cashpoint every week. Pammy makes no bones about guilt-tripping her cousins over not taking an active interest in their parents until now, but the pair take against both of the helpers - they're convinced that giving Eddie access to their banking details is a bad idea, and the bank balance does seem to be a couple of grand lower than it should be.

Bean is best known for his comedies - I could tell from overheard interval discussions that much of the audience was there for another One Man Two Guvnors, although that was already apparent from the way some of them had been doing their best Big Hearty Laugh at the mildest of gags. It would be unfair to blame Bean for the fact that this isn't a big raucous comedy* as that's clearly not what's intended this time around, but it would help if what we were getting instead was clearly defined.

There are some amusing exchanges, although we're in a fairly naturalistic realm so the bickering, running gags and forgetfulness feel like the kind of gentle humour a real old couple might exchange: Raising the odd smile but hardly comedy gold. I feel like the real point is a quieter, more wistful look at ageing and family, but that doesn't quite come off either. Among the slight plot about where the money's going, there's a sense the real treasure is in retired policeman Jack's anecdotes about his life, which he's secretly recording on tape as a legacy. And Armstrong's moments alone on stage as an engaging raconteur do indeed provide the most moving and effective scenes.

But they're the exception rather than the rule here. With the show still in early previews some of the energy and comic timing is bound to pick up, but I doubt it'll be enough to make a huge difference. Near the end there's an abrupt lurch that turns this into a Covid story, that gives the distinct impression that the play was in the middle of being written when the pandemic struck, and was affected accordingly. It certainly doesn't take away from the impression that the story was never quite sure what it was in the first place.

To Have and to Hold by Richard Bean is booking until the 25th of November at Hampstead Theatre.

Running time: 2 hours 30 minutes including interval.

*whoever chose to describe it as an "uproarious new comedy" in the blurb on the other hand could probably do with some finger-pointing