Single Spies at the Lyceum Theatre Sheffield Review
Single Spies
Lyceum Theatre, Sheffield
26-30 April 2016
Reviewed by Marianne Rowley
I attended the Lyceum Theatre in Sheffield on Tuesday 26th April for the opening night of Single Spies by Alan Bennett with a friend of mine.
I have to admit straightaway that I do not know who Alan Bennett is and I have never heard of his play. I knew the play was about spies (obviously from the title).Therefore, when I picked up the program, I had a quick look to get a bit more information. This is when I realised that we were due to see 2 plays. The first one is called An Englishman Abroad and lasts 45 minutes and the second one is called A Question of Attribution and lasts 1 hour 03 minutes. The plays are based on ‘The Cambridge Five’, a group of Englishmen who spied for Russia in the 1930’s and 1940’s.
We did not find out much more and the play started. An Englishman Abroad takes place in Moscow in 1958, it tells you the story of when Coral Browne (a famous actress played by Belinda Lang) met Guy Burgess (one of the spies from ‘The Cambridge Five’ played by Nicholas Farrell). He is in hiding in Moscow in order to escape the English government. He manages to get Coral to run some errands for him back in England. I did find the story interesting and I liked it when the actors addressed the audience to explain what was happening.
At the entr’acte, we were able to read the program a bit further and were able to understand the play which we had just seen. Everything made a lot more sense.
The second play A Question of Attribution takes place in London in the late 1960s. This one is about Anthony Blunt (also from ‘The Cambridge Five’ played by David Robb) who has been found out to be a spy in 1964. He is collaborating with an MI5 agent (played by Nicholas Farrell) who is trying to get more information on the other agent in the ring. During the play, Anthony blunt encounters the Queen (played by Belinda Lang). Now, it is time for my second admission, they lost me. According to the program “A Question of attribution, Anthony Blunt discusses with the Queen, as Surveyor of Pictures, the existence of a third man in a portrait to draw parallels between art forgery and treachery.” I am really sorry to say this but it was quite lengthy dialogues and I really wasn’t sure where the story was going.
The audience seemed to really enjoy the plays and laughed a few times. The staging and props were really good and the actors were amazing. Unfortunately, it really wasn’t my cup of tea.
If you wish to go and see the play, I would highly recommend doing some homework. I have since read the all program and I have found the story of ‘The Cambridge Five’ very interesting, sadly a bit too late to enjoy the play.
The Lyceum Theatre is situated on Tudor Square in the heart of Sheffield City Centre next to the word famous Crucible Theatre. It is a grade II listed building which was built in 1897. It was recently refurbished to its former glory and offers easy access for all. It has plenty of toilets, disabled toilets and changing facilities.
There are a couple of local car parks nearby: the Q Park on Charles Street where you can get 1 hour free by claiming a voucher from the box office and the NCP on Arundel Gate. The Q Park is slightly further away but the discount makes it worth wile. There is a lot of bars and restaurant in the vicinity for a pre-drinks or pre-meal show.
I would have to rate it as 4 out of 5, even though I didn’t personally enjoy it, if you know more about the story and of Alan Bennett, it is a must see.
Rating: 4/5
Tickets cost from £13 to £28 (booking fees may apply).
Single Spies is at the Lyceum Theatre in Sheffield until 30 April 2016. For more information or to book tickets click here or call the box office on 0114 249 6000.
Lyceum Theatre, Norfolk St, Sheffield, South Yorkshire S1 1DA | 0114 249 6000
