Glorious – Peter Quilter

The Oxford Playhouse

This is a play about the true story of Florence Foster Jenkins, a 1940’s American socialite, often referred to as “the World’s worst singer”!

This production is on tour to celebrate the play’s 20^th anniversary, and this week is on at The Oxford Playhouse. The play was first performance 20 years ago, at the time starring Maureen Lipman, and there has also been a film about Florence, starring Meryl Streep in the lead role alongside Hugh Grant.

I had seen the film so was aware of the storyline. What could have come across as a cruel piece was actually told with huge amounts of warmth. And plenty of laughs – but not laughing at Florence, so much as laughing at society and also laughing with her.

The play centres around Florence Foster Jenkins, and her pianist Cosme McMoon, here played by Wendy Peters and Matthew James Morrison. Cosme starts the piece and is effectively the play’s narrator as well as a central character. We see him arriving nervously at Florence’s apartment, to be ‘interviewed’ for the pianist role. We watch Morrison’s disbelief unfold; he can’t really believe that Florence is as unashamedly bad at singing, as she is! However, we also watch over the course of the play his growing affection for her. And he is not alone in this. Her good friend Dorothy, played by Sioned Jones, is also unfailingly fond of her, and also seems oblivious to the lack of singing talent!

Not everyone is a fan, however. In the second half we meet Mrs Verrinder Gedge, played by Caroline Gruber, who is behind a campaign to stop Florence from performing. Gruber also plays a completely different character in the first half, maid Maria, an Italian speaking, slightly ill-tempered maid, cook and housekeeper employed by Foster Jenkins.  And two more contrasting roles you could probably not find as an actor. But she plays both exceptionally well, and with perfect contrast.

Sioned Jones plays Dorothy, the friend, who takes blind loyalty – or should that be deaf loyalty – to the extreme. And Matthew James Morrison’s Cosme, is beautifully played. The audience watches his horror, turn to friendship, respect and loyalty. All of the acting is very good. These are rounded characters, not caricatures.

Wendy Peters’ Florence could easily become caricature, but never does. Florence might be a classic tale of someone with more money than sense. But she is also clearly a damaged lady. Damaged by her upbringing and also the loss of you sister Lilian as a child. And her music is her way of getting through life. Peters can clearly sing. But to paraphrase Eric Morecambe, she can sing all the notes, just not in the right order! And she certainly has volume on her side. Florence’s and Cosme’s delight in playing Carnegie Hall is a joy to watch!

The play is a charming piece, with plenty of laughs, about one of life’s characters. It is well worth catching whilst it is at Oxford or out on tour.

https://www.oxfordplayhouse.com/events/glorious

https://gloriousplay.com