Sixth Side’s production of Lettice and Lovage by Peter Shaffer is an utter delight. The piece tells the story of an English country house tour guide, Lettice Duffet, who enjoys embellishing its history. Meanwhile, Lotte Shoen, who works for the Preservation Trust, is a stickler for the truth and facts hence taking Lettice in for review.  What forms from their interaction is an unlikely but heartwarming friendship.  

The set is very appropriate for the setting and doubles up well for all scene changes. The audience are welcomed into the Dowrick Suite with gentle music playing softly in the background which instantly sets the tone of the play. We open with Lettice giving a tour of the house to mildly interested guests. After this first initial tour and she has shown the visitors out, we witness another rendition of this tour however this time it is more embellished and her descriptions are far more vivid. This repeats several times with the rendition becoming more and more ridiculous. The use of the stall’s stairs works fantastically and the lighting changes to transition to this are very smooth. Ellie Cumbley, Heather Lin, Tom Stepien and Tom Haines make up the ensemble listening to this tour and convey the crowd’s interest and excitement very convincingly. 

It must be noted that Freya Stanton does an amazing job at bringing to life the character of Lettice with outfits to match her over the top, flamboyant and extravagant personality. This is contrasted by the entrance of Lotte, played by Scout Pemberton, who is dressed in grey and dark clothes and taking object instantly to the way Lettice runs her tours. Pemberton expertly portrays Lotte’s morals and reasonings which can be seen in the clear difference between Pemberton’s head shaking and note taking and the excited murmurings of the other guests. 

Sixth Side’s production of Lettice and Lovage by Peter Shaffer is an utter delight

The chemistry between Stanton and Pemberton is a stand out of the production and they play off each other incredibly well. The difference in the characters’ views especially shines through in their meeting in the office and at Lettice’s flat. A particular highlight of the play was when Lettice wielded a sword meanwhile Lotte looked purely terrified which was met with the audience roaring with laughter. Both actors made the audience feel comfortable and at ease with their fantastic performances. 

Another highlight was in the second act where we are introduced to Bardolph, Lettice’s lawyer, played by Tom Haines. Haines’ frustration with Lettice is hilarious and the transition from this to his enjoyment of hearing Lettice and Lotte’s retelling of past events to later his involvement in this retelling is amusing especially his portrayl of the drums. Haines, Stanton and Pemberton work together flawlessly leaving the audience rolling in their seats. 

Though some scene and lighting or music changes could have been smoother, the only critism would be some of the peripheral seats have a slightly restricted view in some cases due to the door in the set and in general may miss parts of the acting overall. However, the cast do well at performing to the wider audience rather than just the centre stall which makes the viewers feel included.  

Ellie Cumbly’s beautiful direction is slick and brings out the comedic nature of the play brilliantly. All the cast fantastically convey emotion and all have their moments of laughter while any slip ups were covered up professionally. The audience could be heard laughing loudly throughout and overall ‘Lettice and Lovage’ is not a production to miss. 

Image: Sixth Side Theatre