★★★★★ - The New European | ★★★★★ - Theatre Weekly | ★★★★★ - Sardines Magazine | ★★★★ - Daily Mail | ★★★★ - The Times | ★★★★ - Mail on Sunday | ★★★★ - Evening Standard
“Both touching and funny with two great actors working hand in glove” - Mail on Sunday
“McKellen and Allam are without doubt one of the great stage double acts” - The New European
“The venerable Ian McKellen and Roger Allam are note perfect” - The Times
Bill Kenwright presents Ian McKellen and Roger Allam in the comedy hit of the Summer, Ben Weatherill’s Frank and Percy, under the Directorship of Sean Mathias.
Frank and Percy is a poignant and witty take on the unexpected relationship that blossoms between two men.
Ever seen a couple of old boys on a park bench and wondered what they are chatting about?
In his new play Ben Weatherill lets us overhear Frank and Percy as they discuss the weather, then their dogs and then each other and so much more. Will the widowed schoolteacher and the elder statesman dare to risk changing their lives or let sleeping dogs lie?
Old friends, three-time Olivier Award winner Roger Allam, and one of our greatest stage and screen actors, Ian McKellen, re-unite with Director Sean Mathias, for this witty, poignant two-hander.
The play made its critically acclaimed world premiere in June at Theatre Royal Windsor directed by Sean Mathias, before transferring to The Other Palace for a limited season run.
__Access Performances__
Signed performances: Wednesday 4th October 2.30pm and Friday 17th November 7.30pm
Relaxed performance: Thursday 19th October 7.30pm.
The humor is the most consistent element of this tale. There is a bucket full of one-liners nicely delivered and well received by the audience, The story itself rambles, but like a wander through the Yorkshire Dales, it has delights around each bend. Maybe not the high drama of ascending Everest but certainly the reward of delicious lemon drizzle cake and quenching Earl Grey once the rocky bits are out of the way. McKellen delivers an ageless mischievous charm that, if we dare utter the word about an actor over 80, shows that sexy isn’t dependent on how many times you have been around the block or the blokes. It is possible to be the romantic gay lead at 84. Allam also deftly avoids being the ‘straight man’ in the comedy with his easy affability and ability to puncture Percy’s ego without skewering his heart.
I wanted to like Frank and Percy more. It stars two of our most accomplished and personable actors; it’s quite amusing; and it carries sweet messages about friendship, love and the ability to surprise oneself later in life. And yet, dramatically, writer Ben Wetherill and director Sean Mathias offer little more than a soft-centred character study that doesn’t break free of its limitations.
2023 | West End |
West End |
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