The Sea

Oxford Playhouse

A force 10 gale howls, waves crash against the east coast of England. There's been a shipwreck.

The strange Willy Carson (definitely no relation to the famous jockey) stumbles ashore. He's survived, but his shipmate is washed up dead. Could Carson have done more to save him?

The Sea is set just before the First World War. The unsettled mood is completed by the sound of heavy artillery fire in the distance, and preparations are under way for imminent hostilities.

But for the imperious Mrs Rafi (Jenny Austen in a terrific performance, worthy of Edith Evans) normal life must go on.

In this Oxford Theatre Guild production, there's a hilarious sequence as she organises some amateur dramatics: "You can be a dog," Miss Price (Deborah Morris) is told. "Excellent, my dog lies down just like that," purrs the unctuous and ineffective vicar (David Guthrie, most convincing).

The vicar really comes into his own in an even funnier scene, a shambolic funeral in which the ashes of the deceased from the shipwreck are liberally scattered around, to the accompaniment of dire hymn-singing, led by the delightfully daffy Jessica Tilehouse (Elizabeth Kirkham).

Meanwhile it's left to Carson (Matt Addis) to comfort the bereaved fiance Rose (Fleur Putt).

Should a funeral be so funny? Playwright Edward Bond describes The Sea as a comedy, but there's tragedy too. In 2002 it may seem ridiculous that the town draper Mr Hatch could be unhinged by fears of an invasion from Mars, but it's nonetheless tragic. By scrupulously observing the shifting moods in this play, director Polly Mountain makes it all the more effective.

Special credit is due to Joe Kenneway, who's taken over the complex, even creepy character of Hatch at only four days' notice, and there's an excellent performance from Daniel Bennett, who develops amiable but slow-witted Hollarcut into a much more dangerous character.

This strongly-acted production continues at the Oxford Playhouse until Saturday.

GILES WOODFORDE