Wednesday 27 December 2017

Review: Misalliance

Hey readers!
It's time for my review of Misalliance.
At the beginning of December, I decided to make a list of theatre shows to see during Christmas, so I researched almost every show playing in London, selecting a few shows that I found to be interesting. Whilst researching, I had a look at what would be playing at local theatres near me, and that is how I stumbled upon Misalliance at the Orange Tree Theatre! After discovering Misalliance, I booked to see it a few days before Christmas. This play turned out to be an absolute treat and I am delighted that I got the chance to watch it.

The cast of Misalliance has a line-up of unbelievably talented actors, each bringing something special to this wonderful production. I adored this production, and the main reason as to why I loved it so much was because of its brilliant cast. Each actor is very well suited to their individual roles, with all of them being tremendously well cast. The casting director should definitely be commended for brining this cast together. There were no weak links whatsoever, all of them were terrific in their own right. They made the perfect team, and through their teamwork, produced an utterly hilarious 2 and a half hours. I could go on and on about this cast; they really were something special when united onstage together.



Misalliance is a satirical comedy about the odd goings on at a country house, featuring themes of socialism and feminism. I found George Bernard Shaw's writing to be hilarious; it certainly appealed to my sense of humour. There were several moments throughout the play whereby I was laughing my head off. Misalliance is an excellently written piece. I appreciated the fact that the political themes within the play were very subtle, as opposed to plays like An Inspector Calls, by J.B. Priestley where the meaning of it is too obvious.

The direction by Paul Miller was excellent. Despite the play being written over 100 years ago, through his excellent skills Miller has been able to give Misalliance a new lease of life. The set was fairly simple, yet I found it to be effectual. I was extremely impressed with the costume design, which was utterly perfect for the time period in which the play is set. The costumes are very helpful to the show when trying to transport them to the 1910's.

This production left a big impact on me; it was magnificent! It is to date my favourite production at the Orange Tree Theatre of all time. Misalliance has a cast full of amazing actors and I hope to see all of them in future productions. Misalliance ends on the 20th January, so don't miss your chance to see it before it ends!

The featured star of Misalliance is, drum roll please... RHYS ISAAC-JONES!


Each of the cast members in Misalliance are more than worthy of the tile of 'Featured Star'. It took me a great deal of time to actually choose someone; it was far from easy. It was not clear to me who I should choose and I was torn with this decision. However, in the end I chose Rhys Issac-Jones, who portrayed Bentley Summerhays. Rhys is one of the first characters to enter the stage, and in the first few minutes he already leaves a big impact on the audience. He delivered every line perfectly and was hysterically funny. 

Now for my final verdict on Misalliance. I give Misalliance...


At the interval after act one, I wasn't quite sure weather I would end up awarding Misalliance a 3 star rating or a 4 star rating. However, after act two my mind was made up. This revival of Misalliance definitely deserves its 4 star rating, due to its phenomenal acting and witty writing!

Think it should have got a higher rating? Agree with my rating? Think it should have got a lower rating? If so comment below.

Thanks for reading!

-The Reviewer

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