Private Lives
Noel Coward's Romp at American Conservatory Theater
By: Victor Cordell - Sep 20, 2024
These days, honeymoons don’t carry great significance or cachet. With all of the various forms of relationships that have replaced traditional courtship and marriage, the notion of consummation on the wedding night is not what it used to be. Such was not the case in 1930, when Noël Coward’s Private Lives premiered – nearly 100 years ago!
Coward’s works are quintessentially British, and this comedy of manners, or bad manners, is no exception. When well directed and acted, the humor does hold up, even if the social conventions don’t. American Conservatory Theater can always be expected to mount a professional production, and this one strikes all the right notes. The actors in this four-hander are uniformly funny and make the most of the material.
As British as it is, the action of the original takes place in Deauville and Paris, as honeymoons are special occasions that upper-class Brits would likely celebrate on the continent. ACT has chosen a production in which the lovers are from Buenos Aires, with the action relocated to Mar del Plata, a seaside resort in Argentina, and then Montevideo, Uruguay. Argentina was one of the wealthiest countries in the world then, and much of their life styles would have been similar to the British.
In this winsome production, considerable humor draws from pantomime rather than words, and two non-verbal emphases draw from the relocation to Latin America. A recurring theme is the tango, which was born in Buenos Aires, and the music and dance do add considerable flair. The other is the use of pretend bullfighting by one couple when they are bored by the other pair.
Otherwise, there is nothing suggestive of the Latin venue. What is significant but unmentioned by the company however is that the director, all of the actors, and many of the creatives are Latine. Director KJ Sanchez has drawn on this pool of acting talent in various productions and locales, so that they are almost like a family or a traveling troupe.
The essence of Private Lives is that Elyot and Amanda had been married for three years and divorced for five. They have both just remarried, and lo and behold, on their honeymoons they espy each other on their adjoining terraces at their honeymoon hotel. What a coincidence! Obviously, this happenstance is grist for their interaction and the question of whether they would reunite as a couple or not, and it is not long before they test out the idea.
Elyot comes from money but revolts against many of the social conventions that his class embraces, though he does draw the line when it comes to male prerogatives. Hugo E. Carbajal delights as Elyot, capturing his flippancy and silliness. He mugs and shimmies and flops and beseeches to great effect. He is also volatile and clearly still has a love-hate relationship with his former wife.
Amanda is Sarita Ocón, and she is the perfect match for Carbajal as is Amanda for Elyot. Ocón shares the same gift for pantomime. Her broad, whole-body, comic movement with flailing arms and legs reminiscent of Steve Martin always draws laughs. Amanda is hot-blooded as well, and no shrinking violet when it comes to standing up to her man, as Ocón does with great verve. She’ll have none of this male chauvinism that allows a man the liberty of peccadillos but scorns a woman for the same action.
The wronged, younger new spouses are the perky but quick to cry Gianna DiGregorio Rivera as Sibyl and the proper but quick to challenge offenses Brady Morales-Woolery as Victor. Sibyl is a more traditional trophy wife, sexy and shallow, while Victor is the formal and intellectual type. But as Elyot and Amanda test out their revived relationship, the other two become an odd-couple team of sorts as well. Both actors are strong in their roles.
As a popular and well-respected play, Private Lives has been subjected to all manner of intellectual dissection. Analysts have tried to frame it as fitting models concerning the likes of social mores, women’s rights, and theater of the absurd. None of that appears to have been the playwright’s intention. In fact, a weakness in the minds of some more serious theater goers might be that the sub-text is weak, and the play lacks redeeming social value. Whether or not – it does provide an evening of fun and laughter.
Private Lives, written by Noël Coward is produced by American Conservatory Theater and plays at Toni Rembe Theater, 415 Geary Street, San Francisco, CA through October 6, 2024.