Fine actors do a curiosity well

THE CREEPER
Playhouse Theatre

IAN Richardson has returned to the stage after eight years and in many way you would be foolish to miss him.
He is as subtle as a razor, menacing and deadly like a feared prosecuting council.
But here he is as Edward Kimberly a millionaire who hires young male companions to live in opulence. He is about to ruthlessly discharge Michel and Maurice. Outside a massive creeper obscures the garden – its symbolism escaped me. Michel does not like his abrupt and forced exit. Maurice’s claim to be a shirt salesmen at Austin Reeves looks likely when he simulates strangulation by necktie on a balloon. Written by Pauline Macaulay in 1965, there is no specific indication of Kimberly’s sexual orientation or his real relationship with these young men. There’s nothing to show or titillate in the open atmosphere of 2006. This was a world with working-class youths in the company of rich old men. Kimberly indulges then expels as Maurice’s hold tightens over his elegant employer with fatal consequences.
Richardson’s feline character is masterly and his inability to feel or return affection is devoid of all sentimentality. Towards the end he offers a brandy to his ancient butler Holmes (Harry Towb), the first and last drink in his lifetime from the master.
Alan Cox is the streetwise brash and opportunistic Michel – a mixture of Frankie Howard and Bette Davis – this is a man it would be unwise to turn your back on. Oliver Dimsdale’s Maurice moves from deference to assertion then menace.
All in all, excellent actors performing a curiosity and doing it well. In a sumptuous set designed by Hayden Griffin and effectively directed by Bill Bryden.
Until April 22
020 7839 4401