If anything is going to make you smile and brighten you up during these horrible cold days, it has to be THE BEST EXOTIC MARIGOLD HOTEL which is at the New Theatre in Cardiff for the rest of the week.
The story may well be familiar to you if you’ve read the award-winning book by DEBORAH MOGGACH or indeed if you’ve seen the movie which was a massive hit back in 2012. The cast in this production is also crammed with familiar faces from the big and little screen.
We are transported from the centre of Cardiff to the not so opulent Marigold Hotel in Bangalore in India. Sunny Kapoor (NISHAD MORE) may not be the most successful hotelier in town but his slightly incompetent ways are more than compensated for with his enthusiasm. Despite his Mums (REKHA JOHN-CHERIYAN) reservations Sunny convinces her that the hotel would make a fantastic retirement home.
Enter our main cast of retirees. Evelyn played by TESSA PEAKE-JONES (yes, that is Raquel from Only Fools) is joined by Jean and Douglas (EILEEN BATTYE and PAUL NICHOLAS). Madge (BELINDA LANG), Norman (GRAHAM SEED) and finally Muriel (MARLENE SIDAWAY) and Dorothy (PAOLA DIONISOTTI).
There are also mighty fine performances from SHILA IQBAL as love interest Sahani, TIRAN AAKEL as Mr Gupta/Fernandes, KRISS DOSANJH as Jimmy/Sadhu/Waiter, KERENA JAGPAL as Kamila and ANANT VARMAN as Tikal/Mohan.
We told you it’s a stellar cast.
This is by no means a criticism, but actually one of the joys of seeing a show with so many familiar faces on stage together. For a few moments you can hear the mumblings of audience members commenting on Paul and his TV series ‘Just Good Friends’, or Tessa and the joy of being Del Boys wife. It’s lovely to have so much positive reaction to such well-known names.
And on the subject of reaction, here’s what last night’s audience thought of this joyous production……
If you’ve seen the film, all the elements you love are there, but Deborah’s stage script is ever so slightly different and I felt gave the cast a little more freedom. At the heart of the story however, is a simple message – You’re never too old to take risks, find love and embrace those second chances, even in the most surprising of places.
In an age where everything is in your face, fast-paced and constantly full-on, it was nice to sit back and enjoy a gentler pace of life offered at the Marigold Hotel. The story is sweet and filled with charm but with plenty of laughs too, a lot of which resonated with the New Theatre audience last night.
As I mentioned the story has changed slightly for the stage, this is most definitely not a straight copy of the movie. It takes an occasional dip into our hi-tech world but when the generations collide is where the show works best I felt. The older residents with all their ‘know it all‘ wisdom and the younger members filled with energy and vigour is a great blend. The balance between them was perfect and made for some funny moments.
It’s a long production, weighing in at two and a half hours, but the story doesn’t hang about. We are thrown straight into the Hotel when the ‘Brits‘ arrive and see the not so glamorous Best Exotic, which is neither best or exotic to be honest. But Sunny is passionate about the establishment he inherited from his Father and that enthusiasm slowly rubs off on our residents. Sunny has some of the funniest lines in the story and the rapport between him and Mrs Kapoor (Mum) is terrific.
Just a note on the set itself – as you can see from the picture at the top of the page, it is really impressive. Appropriately shabby it may be but it’s also mesmerising. It doesn’t move throughout the production, with the cast and props coming in an out, as needs be. You can’t take your eyes off this awesome work by set and costume designer COLIN RICHMOND.
Add to that lighting by OLI FENWICK which takes us through the passing from day into night, and sounds by MIC POOL which punctuate elements of the story and you really do feel like you’re on the authentic streets of Bangalore.
But as great as the look, feel and sound of the show is, this is a story about people, and one filled with more heart than you’ll find anywhere.
The cast are really lovely, capturing all the reservations and excitement of new challenges in later life. As the stories unfold we learn more about each of our main players.
I guess what I got from it was a reminder that we should never judge a book by its cover. What we think about someone, or the situation they are in, completely changes as we see the bigger picture. For example, how Norman first appears to be a sex-mad force of nature, but when reality kicks and he reveals his story, we see the real heartbreak behind this fragile man.
Jean and Douglas are clearly reaching the end of their time together. Paul plays the part superbly, and a million miles away from Vince in Just Good Friends. It’s easy to see why he’s slowly becoming less tolerant, and far less in love with his oppressive wife.
As Evelyn, Tessa Peake-Jones turns in a fine performance and when she and Paul are together there’s a real chemistry. As time passes Evelyn grows in confidence as she realises there could be more than a Just Good Friends thing happening between her and Douglas.
The story is full of surprises and nice little reveals about each of our main players and it would be wrong for me to add some spoilers to this review. All I will say is keep an eye on Dorothy and every well to do male in India needs to keep an eye out for Madge, who declares to anyone who’ll listen that she ‘wants a man‘ and plenty of fun in her later years.
The story is full of warmth and charm and is beautifully delivered by a first rate cast. I can tell you that everyone in the New Theatre seemed to enjoy the show as much as I did, both younger and not so younger. It’s not at all a difficult show to recommend. If you enjoyed the film, you will absolutely enjoy this updated take on the story.
But let me take a moment to direct the younger theatre goers to this show. The theme may be about growing old, slightly disgracefully in some cases, but the lessons are something which apply to us all. We really are never to old to try something new or dip our toes into the things which sometimes scare us. And I would say do that with this show, give it a go, you’ll come out of the theatre glad that you did.
As for those of us of a certain age, this is all our stories up on the stage. There is definitely something we have all experienced or felt, so get along and see your life performed brilliantly this week.
This is one hotel I would definitely rebook for another stay. The staff are welcoming, fun, enthusiastic and slightly kooky. As for the other guests; well, you couldn’t wish to spend a night with a better bunch of strangers who have all come together to have one final hurrah in their later years.
THE BEST EXOTIC MARIGOLD HOTEL runs around 2 Hours 30 Minutes, including interval and is playing at the New Theatre in Cardiff through to Saturday 11th March. Performances are at 7:30pm each evening with a 2:30pm matinee on Thursday and Saturday. Tickets range from £21 to £39 with a host of prices in between. For more details go HERE.
You can read our original show feature HERE.
