Picasso Stole the Mona Lisa

Farce is a very difficult genre to get right - it is complex to write well, difficult to direct and requires great discipline from the cast. It is best served straight (without ham) to let the audience see the humour in the situation without it being pointed.

I had no problem with the premise of this piece; farce requires a situation in which confusion and miscomprehension can prevail but in this case the elements simply didn't gel. The script stretches the plot a little too thin by over-writing some scenes beyond their comic potential and by trying to be too smart. The direction lacked both pace and variety with pauses coming at odd spots in the dialogue that made them sound more like the actor was reaching for a line. Movement had little purpose (as in motivation) and at times actors crabbed across the stage so that they could keep facing front. The random self-satisfied interruptions by "famous people" did nothing to enhancethe piece but served only to slow the pace even more. Sadly I could not believe in any of the characters as portrayed and the production as a whole smacked more of an end-of-term entertainment than a play for consumption by the general public.

The cast enjoyed it, as did some of the audience, though the loudest laughs appeared to come from the lighting desk and one group of the audience. .