Ladies Down Under

Published Monday 16 April 2007 at 11:45 by Kevin Berry

The four ladies of Amanda Whittington’s hugely successful comedy Ladies Day, are back with this sequel and there is sufficient strength in their characters for a third jaunt.

There is rich humour all the way and a degree of insight into the female condition, though a touch more exposition might help those who missed out on Ladies Day.

Having won almost a million pounds with an accumulator bet at Royal Ascot, when that posh event was held at York, the ladies now set out for Australia. Their trip becomes a life changing journey. Rather cleverly their winnings are not a massive fortune, just enough to knock their values askew.

Whittington has created ladies to care about and laugh with and there are moments to cheer. Martin Barrass and Damien Warren-Smith play a number of roles. They are little more than cheerful stereotypes but that is the nature of the play.

Lucy Beaumont as the youngest of the four ladies has intriguing appeal and devastating comic timing. All four ladies are played so well that audiences will feel they know them.

A very impressive soundscape, from Roberto del Pino and Sarah Cauldwell, helps place the many diverse scenes without fuss. The wheeled sets, designed by Richard Foxton, and the stage props are moved by the cast but not always smoothly and the cast do not always exit in character.

A play for the ladies? Not quite. Gents will be delighted that their wives/partners suggested going along.