Last week or so, I posted an entry about The History Boys. I went and actually saw the show last night, so I can appraise it a bit better now.

The play itself is really, really strong - it’s much better than the screenplay for the film. The direction was lacking a bit in this production, however. The reviews I read said that it started to drag in the second act, but really the performance last night never really crackled. The dialogue needs to be fast and spontaneous, and it just never really got there. The guy playing the headmaster was just shocking; he played every scene for laughs and conspicuously detracted from several key moments. The space itself seemed too large for such an intimate show.

So, I will say that I enjoyed the play as a whole. However, given the choice again, I would probably save the money and just go see the original cast in the film, now playing at the Nova.

Related posts:

1. History Boys
2. Comedy Festival ‘07 on a late Friday Night
3. Australia vs. Kuwait tonight
4. The Conclusions of today’s Heineken Classic
5. Melbourne Women’s International Jazz Festival