Review: Gentlemen Never Tell

[jducoeur]

Spreading the word: I just finished off my Arisia weekend by watching the encore "performance" of "Gentlemen Never Tell", the first spin-off play from the Mrs. Hawking series.

tl;dr -- go watch it.

This is quite consciously a PG Wodehouse style comedy, with a more modern sense of gender and sexual reality. It's a bit of a mystery and a bit of a screwball comedy, with many "oh, nooooo" moments and an excellently intricate plot.

It's a very well-observed bit of both fiction and history, and it is magnificently funny. The writing is brilliant (with more laugh-out-loud moments than I've had in a very long time), the acting and direction are great, and the videography is absolutely professional-grade, showing what can be done in current circumstances with enough skill and care.

You don't have to know anything about the previous Hawking plays: there are a few references to them here and there, but they don't affect this story very much. (Suffice it to say, Nathaniel -- to whom this story is being told -- is one of the protagonists of the main series.)

It runs about an hour-twenty -- basically a full-length play, with the tightness permitted by the video form. (Instant set and costume changes are useful.)

Like I said: go watch it. It's light and fun and utterly delightful, while still having a lot to say under the surface.