Review: How The Other Half Loves (The Old Vic)

Review by Daz Gale

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For Matthew Warchus’ final season as the Artistic Director of the Old Vic, the space has been reconfigured into an In The Round setting, bringing the action closer to the audience than ever before, often to brilliant effect as seen with One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest, their now West End transferred production of Arcadia and even their holiday tradition, A Christmas Carol. Forgive the terrible pun, but it is a fittingly full circle moment for their latest production, restoring Alan Ayckbourn’s much-loved classic How The Other Half Loves to its originally intended In The Round staging, 57 years after it first premiered. It also adds a personal touch to Warchus’ final season, as he talks about his admiration for Ayckbourn in the programme notes - something that has played a huge part in his success and near-faultless hit-rate as the Artistic Director over the past ten years. In what has been a pretty impressive final season, would How The Other Half Loves prove that this is one love affair that still has plenty of life left in it?

How The Other Half Loves focuses on three different couples and the unexpected ways they become intertwined through multiple misunderstandings. Married couples Frank and Fiona Foster and Bob and Teresa Phillips couldn’t be more different from each other, only they do have one thing in common - each other. Fiona and Bob are having a secret affair, and to cover their tracks they involve an unsuspecting third couple, Mary and William Featherstone. With Teresa suspecting Bob’s infidelities and Frank getting the wrong end of the stick, they both invite the couple to separate parties, but the confusion, secrets and lies only become more tangled as the play progresses.

It is a classic story of confusion and misunderstandings that is a recognisable trope across stage and screen, but it is the clever way Alan Ayckbourn weaves it all together that sets it apart from any similar stories to which How The Other Half Loves can be compared to. Though infidelity is at the heart of the story, it is a surprisingly mild and timid affair (the show that is, not the actual affair) which somehow manages to come across as refreshingly harmless and almost family-friendly, aside from a handful of four-letter words. That might sound like an unexpected statement to make, but the key in Ayckbourn’s writing isn’t in big reveals or shock value, it is in the smaller, more subtle pieces of everyday life, and that is where this play truly shines.

Premiering in 1969, How The Other Half Loves is still every bit as riveting today. Admittedly, it is a product of its time and does come across dated in certain respects, with attitudes towards women in particular thankfully a lot less severe than the dismissive way the men treat their wives in this play. The writing still remains sharp and frequently funny, though admittedly it is more of a mild chuckle than the riotous laughter you might get in other plays currently running. Still, there is something to be said about sitting in a theatre and sharing laughter with a room full of strangers, creating an overall joyous experience that spoke to the timeless and genius nature of Ayckbourn’s writing.

It is in Phillip Breen’s direction that the true genius of this production really shines, however. Not just matching the standard of Ayckbourn’s writing but even elevating it. I saw a previous production of How The Other Half Loves in its last West End run ten years ago, before I had started reviewing, and though I enjoyed it, I don’t remember enjoying it half as much as this production. Much of that is down to this In The Round configuration, tearing down the walls between cast and audience and immersing them into the story for a much more intimate production that connects in a way few others can. Knowing this was the original intent of the story only makes this production all the more successful, restoring Ayckbourn’s original vision in new and creative ways that further prove why the Old Vic continues to be one of the most exciting and consistent theatres in London.

It is the details of Breen’s direction that makes this production all the more impressive. With two couples in two houses on stage for most of the time, it would be far easier to do this in a proscenium theatre with a clear divide on the stage. Put the cast on a small circular stage and it gets much messier, in the best possible ways. Breen’s direction plays up on the contrasts between the two main couples as their lives and stories intersect with some brilliant overlapping that plays up to the juxtaposed nature of the story. Breen’s direction is at his finest when it comes to the dinner parties, taking place on two separate evenings but played out simultaneously to humorous and often hilarious effect. As the evening(s) progress, it all becomes more frantic with the poor Featherstone’s turning from one couple to the other in increasingly quick fashion, never missing a beat thanks to Breen’s meticulous direction. Full of inspired choices, a favourite moment comes near the climax as poor Mary Featherstone has to run from the Phillips’ home to the Foster’s, bearing in mind they exist in the very same space. The creative way Breen realises this really is inspired, resulting in appreciative applause from the elated audience.

What has continually impressed me about the Old Vic’s In The Round season is the ways the set design has been used to minimal effect. There are no walls to decorate, just a small space in the middle and whatever happens to be above it. Rob Howell has risen to the challenge with his set design, finding ways to clearly define the two separate homes, while finding furniture that could co-exist in both. Two different dinner tables is a great example of this, with Howell’s costume design similarly impressive, especially when it comes to a certain over-the-top outfit worn by Fiona, in a fantastically exaggerated fashion. A special mention must also go to Kev McCurdy’s fight direction, not easy to execute in such a small space, but carried out remarkably.

A terrific cast of six bring these three couples to life spectacularly, with Rowan Polonski and Ayesha Antoine starring as Bob and Teresa Phillips, respectively. Polonski’s Bob isn’t so much charming as he is cheeky in quite an unlikeable characterisation, though he does find himself eclipsed by the strength and tenacity of Antoine’s utterly compelling Teresa - a character who is refreshingly uncompromising, to both a comedic effect but also an empowering one. Laura Elsworthy has a great character arc as Mary Featherstone, enjoying some of the more satisfying moments in her growth with no shortage of comedic ones too. Her husband, William, is brilliantly played by an over-the-top Adam Gillen, relishing in the opportunity to milk the initially timid but ultimately surprising nature of the character who has unwittingly become a pawn in the other couples’ game.

Dorothy Atkinson simultaneously charms and connives as Fiona Foster, bringing comedy to the character’s elegance and offering a relatively more understated performance at odds with some of the characters looks and traits, and certainly distinct from her stage counterparts. It is Roger Allam that steals the show, however. Even a few fluffed lines and a slight sense that a bit of refinement wouldn’t go amiss couldn’t detract from the magnificence of his overblown performance as Frank Foster. Utterly hilarious, his doddering and state of perpetual confusion was played perfectly, with Allam brilliantly ramping up Frank's inability to see what is actually going on and commitment to living in his own weird little world. Allam’s comic timing is second to none, creating a masterclass performance that had me simultaneously grinning and wincing, again for all the right reasons.

How The Other Half Loves may set itself around a series of misunderstandings, but there has certainly been no misunderstanding here. Phillip Breen has certainly understood how best to tell Alan Ayckbourn’s classic comedy in a setting as tricky as the Old Vic’s In The Round configuration, and excelled in doing so. Playing true to the original themes of the play while still making sure it resonates with a 2026 audience, the result is a refreshingly mild and funny production that is guaranteed to have audiences leaving the theatre with a smile on their faces. Bolstered by a stunning cast, this is one of the best examples of how special a night at the Old Vic can be in their current configuration, speaking both for the timelessness of Alan Ayckbourn’s writing and the innovative nature of the space itself. Effectively splitting the audience in two with its In The Round nature, I can’t say for certain how the other half of the audience felt, but if they were anything like me, I’d be shocked if they didn’t love it.

How The Other Half Loves plays at the Old Vic until 19th September. Tickets from https://allthatdazzles.londontheatredirect.com/play/how-the-other-half-loves-tickets

Photos by Manuel Harlan