I saw Home I’m Darling at The Lowry on its short UK Tour. And I loved it!
I would class Home I’m Darling as a “Dramady” which is a comedy and drama. And it was a very interesting concept with a couple who live in the 50s lifestyle but it is the modern day. We follow them along the journey with bumps and problems. Home I’m Darling was light on the surface but as you dug beneath it had darker themes of Sexism and it questions how we live today.
Katherine Parkinson plays Judy who is the “housewife” very well and I really enjoyed the tone and way she delivered the text. Richard Harrington plays Johnny (Judy’s husband) very well and forms a 3-dimentional character. All the cast were superb and each character was well rounded. Laura Wade has written this play very well and study’s these themes with bubbly dialogue. A stand out moment from the book was a monologue by Judy’s mother telling Judy that the 50s were terrible and her fantasy lifestyle has to end.
The direction is by Tamara Harvey and she has done a great job at immersing you into their lifestyles and the scenes feel lively and kinetic. The design is by Anna Fleischle and I have seen a lot of her work and I enjoy it very much. This production is aesthetically pleasing with a pastel colour pallet. And the set is an almost 50s dolls house with two levels which are detailed and realistic. I found the lighting to be naturalistic with the effect of sunlight coming through the window. In-between the scenes there was a 50s dance couple break which was a nice breather from the scene and the lighting for this was very fun and vibrant. The choreography sections were by Charlotte Bloom.
Laura Wades writing is clever and subtle. It feels like a tv dramady at times with visitors coming in and out which made it easy to watch and it simmered along nicely. It was very naturalistic and funny at times.
Overall Home I’m Darling is a clever 4 star comedy about sexism and other relevant themes of today. The only issue I had with it was it took a while to get going and it felt a bit slow but after the introduction of her Mother, their “perfect life” isn’t so perfect…
Have you seen Home I’m Darling? Feel free to comment below or message me on instagram @unofficialtheatre
Thanks for reading!
Eugene
Unofficial Theatre 