HUMBLE BOY

Combined Actors of Cambridge at the ADC Theatre March 2006

I was pleased to be asked to review Combined Actors production of Charlotte Jones’s much acclaimed Humble Boy.  Having seen such fine productions by this Company as Blue Remembered Hills, on Golden Pond and Memory of Water; I travelled to Cambridge with both hope and expectation and I was not disappointed.  This turned out to be a first-class evening of theatre.

Felix Humble is a modern-day Hamlet who, on returning from Cambridge to his Cotswold home, is stricken by his father's death and his mother's proposed remarriage: a lost boy in his mid-30s who fiercely resents his mother's sexuality, clutching his father's pot of ashes as if it were a comfort blanket.   His elegant and glamorous mother, Flora Humble, is entertaining the rather vulgar  George Pye, who she proposes to marry. George’s daughter Rosie, once had a love affair with Felix which, unbeknown to him, culminated in the birth of a daughter. Because of this George hates Felix and the feeling is mutual. The spinster, Mercy Lott, is Flora's do-good-ing friend and doormat and her role is almost that of a maid. Jim the Gardener, consoles Felix talking to him alone, until the final scene.

Chris Hindley’s beautiful set was a feast for the eye, one almost felt like strolling round before exiting through the gate to the road – very realistic.  I loved Felix’s “eureka moment”, which he missed but we saw, as the apple dropped from tree to shed, to beehive, to ground – magic!

The standard of the acting was incredibly high. Jan Dekker’s Felix was well done. The conflict with his mother built convincingly. Susan Painter, as the impeccably groomed Flora, was in fine form – her remarks to Felix scathing, spiteful with a sting as deadly as her late husband’s bees.  Colin McLean’s crass, foul-mouthed George Pye was a wonderful contrast, while Geraldine Hindley as Mercy convincingly found the gentle humour of her role - giving the funniest and best grace speech you will ever hear and her reaction when she realised the seasoning she had used in the soup was actually the late Humble’s ashes was priceless and expertly handled. This strong cast was augmented with a perceptive performance by Helen Holgate as Rosie and Robin Lewsey quietly unobtrusive as Jim. The final scene between Flora and Jim bought tears to the eyes. 

The play is filled with literary, scientific and bee-keeping references but I did feel the Latin naming of flowers went on a tad too long— though that is in the writing and is not a comment on the acting or direction.  For all the talk about bees and black holes, however, it is a son-and-mother story and a study in grief.  Though complex this is a genuinely touching comedy, confidently directed for Combined Actors by Richard Peoples. 

Reviewed by Jenni Saunders