Private Lives (West End)
Ends Nov 2023
Private Lives (West End)
90

Private Lives (West End) London Reviews and Tickets

90%
(18 Reviews)
Positive
100%
Mixed
0%
Negative
0%
Members say
Great acting, Entertaining, Funny, Clever, Great writing

About the Show

Nigel Havers and Patricia Hodge star in this new production of Noël Coward’s dark comedy.

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Member Reviews (17)

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64 Reviews | 3 Followers
93
Funny, Clever, Great acting, Classic, Great writing

See it if you like traditional theatres. It’s got everything you hope for classic comedy from intelligent writing to great performances.

Don't see it if you prefer it to be adjusted in line with today’s pc. You may need to remember it was written back in 1930s.

146 Reviews | 18 Followers
79
Intelligent, Hilarious, Great writing, Great staging, Great acting

See it if you love classic plays with old fashioned humour

Don't see it if your expecting laugh out loud or big spectacles

15 Reviews | 0 Followers
90
Great acting, Funny, Entertaining, Delightful, Clever

See it if You want to laugh with a classic wonderful play

Don't see it if You don't like comedy

2 Reviews | 0 Followers
99
Enchanting, Cliched, Clever, Absorbing, Delightful

See it if You need to have a good sense of humour to understand some of the irony.

Don't see it if You are not cynical and believe in fairy tales.

36 Reviews | 3 Followers
During previews
80
Entertaining, Great acting, Enchanting, Absorbing

See it if You enjoy classic theatre

Don't see it if You prefer more action and scenary changes

6 Reviews | 0 Followers
During previews
80
Classic and very un-woke, Great acting, Great writing, Hilarious, Romantic

See it if Performances and they didn't shy away from the traditional script. It is theatre history

Don't see it if a classic piece with attitudes of its time - which do not fit so well into today , may offend you

5 Reviews | 0 Followers
During previews
80
Great acting, Funny, Entertaining

See it if You like seeing the dynamics of different types of relationships in couples and how ridiculous they can be.

Don't see it if You want something modern.

Critic Reviews (9)

BroadwayWorld
September 14th, 2023

"This is a safe and settled delivery of 'Private Lives', but one bristling with chemistry between two beautiful older troupers."
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The London Evening Standard
September 14th, 2023

“Veiled in comedy, the play discusses religion, morality and mortality...It’s a meticulous piece of dumbshow [performed by] consummate pros.”
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The Times (UK)
September 14th, 2023

“Nothing remotely as radical is on offer in Christopher Luscombe’s production, which trundles rather than glides towards its tempestuous conclusion... The best of the repartee still sparkles, but I’ll admit that I spent much of the evening admiring the designer Simon Higlett’s Deauville hotel façade and the luscious, semicircular evocation of Amanda’s Paris apartment.”
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The Telegraph (UK)
September 14th, 2023

“Christopher Luscombe’s witty, handsome revival succeeds because it trusts the material, allowing the profundity to quietly transcend the flippancy.”
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All That Dazzles (UK)
September 14th, 2023

“This production of ‘Private Lives’ was a faithful recreation of a well-loved classic...While I still enjoyed this production immensely, it didn’t feel as slick as it could have been with some real uneven moments letting the overall high quality down. With many fantastic qualities going for it including the chance to see some legendary actors in a relatively intimate theatre, this is still a show audiences are sure to love.”
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Time Out London
September 14th, 2023

"There might not be anything truly novel in here, but it is hard to knock time spent with such delightfully exuberant actors."
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London Theatre
September 14th, 2023

"It’s probably heresy to suggest that this play might not always be quite as witty as it thinks it is. To paraphrase, too much flippancy can be annoying, but stuffiness is worse. For Amanda and Elyot, at their age, life is too short to take things seriously."
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The Arts Desk
September 14th, 2023

“It seems churlish... given how fleet these two are, how deftly the jokes land, how elegantly they play off each other, to complain, but the wild physicality at the end of Act II is, perhaps understandably, missing.”
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