A handbag

Reviews had led me to believe that The Importance of Being Earnest with Ncuti Gatwa at the National Theatre featured so much gay behaviour that the plot was seriously distorted. This was a huge exaggeration. Yes, the subtle gay hints in the text kind of get pointed out with a nudge and a wink: some extra references are put in, and the whole thing is framed with two dances in which the cast camp it up. But the play itself is delivered pretty straight, and actually very well. No-one who loves the play need fear that this version is a travesty.

Casting is obviously colourblind in this case. Lady Bracknell is nevertheless allowed to be West Indian, which is slightly confusing but allows for a performance by Sharon D Clarke which we wouldn’t have wanted to miss.

The cast also add the kind of reactions that could not have featured originally: punching the air, muttering ‘Oh fuck’ and so on. But really none of these little quirks is a problem.

Arguably a bigger difficulty would face any production: the fact that the play is one of the best-known texts in the English language. The audience knows the script almost as well as the actors. We might almost feel like the lady who said Hamlet was a disappointment – it turned out to be just a lot of popular quotes strung together.

Anyway, there is a film of the performance coming out, and I recommend it.