Private Lives
126. Noel Coward, Private Lives
This three-act comedy begins with two couples who are both at Deauville on their honeymoons. The setting seems innocuous, even romantic, at first; however, it soon becomes obvious that the husband of one couple and the wife of the other couple were both married before - to each other. When Elyot and Amanda bump into each other at their hotel, dramatic complications ensue, and their tempestuous romantic past is revealed. The fun of the play is seeing how the four individuals’ tangled lives and emotions will sort themselves out.
This was my first experience with a Noel Coward play, and it more than surpassed my expectations. The dialogue is extremely funny in a sharp, almost cruel way, and it’s wonderful to watch Elyot and Amanda interact. Despite the overall sparseness of the play (only four characters worth mentioning, and just two different settings), it conjures up the whole glamorous atmosphere of Europe between the wars: cocktails, cigarette holders, evening gowns, witty paradoxes, the veneer of gaiety over a deeper cynicism. In sum, I really enjoyed reading this play, and I would have loved to see it performed by the original cast - especially with Coward himself and Laurence Olivier in leading roles!