COLOMBE

Salisbury Playhouse

A production of a play is a complicated mix of ingredients, and its staging is an attempt to produce the perfect theatrical soufflé night after night. It is therefore unsurprising - but nonetheless depressing - that so few productions achieve the cordon bleu standard. However, Jonathan Church's production of Colombe which marks the end of his plaudit-laden spell as Artistic Director of Salisbury Playhouse, wins him his third Michelin star. With the flair of a master chef, he has blended a bittersweet script with a cast which offers talent and depth throughout its ranks.

Anouilh's play tells the story of Colombe (Carolyn Backhouse), a virginal innocent who is whose new husband Julien (Damien Goodwin) - a man of high standards and high dudgeon - leaves her in the care of his actress mother (Kate O'Mara) whilst he goes off to perform National Service. Dazzled by the technicolour world of the theatre, Colombe loosens her stays - both mental and physical - with the assistance of Julien's charmingly shallow brother Armand (Matthew Whittle). When Julien returns, he finds his wife has - depending on your point of view - descended into trollopery or discovered her true personality beyond her husband's shadow.

Colombe resounds with Anouilh's leitmotivs of the corruption of purity and the loss of innocence in a world dominated by compromise, money, and the search for gratification. It carefully avoids simplistic messages by making all its characters equally (un)appealing, and it is hard to judge whether the changes which overcome Colombe are a blow for the liberation of women or an indictment of the amoral candyfluff egocentricity of actors. But there is a great deal of wit enveloping this bleak serving of 20th Century disillusionment, which draws on the full spectrum of French theatrical tradition from Racine to Feydeau.

Jeremy Sams' translation strikes a near-perfect balance between period authenticity and modern comprehensibility. The play may be set in 1900, but the language draws successfully on the full idiom of 20th century vernacular. This contemporary styling of the dialogue allows Anouilh's wit and sharp-eyed psychological realism to strike right at the audience's heart without the intervening frosting of 'formalised' period language.

The cast give an accomplished ensemble performance, with Kate O'Mara revelling in the part of a theatrical grande dame without ever slipping over the edge into burlesque. Jan Waters and Richard Kane both give fine displays of the essence of good character acting. All too often, character actors ham up their moment of glory in a jarringly grotesque display. However, these two actors deliver their set pieces with a light touch, exquisite pacing and a comic exaggeration which always stays the right side of gross caricature, and then fade smoothly back into the background.

The end-product is both extremely funny and extremely moving. And the final credit for this finely crafted piece of intelligent, entertaining theatre rests with the director. A worthy parting performance by Jonathan Church, and one for which the good burghers of Salisbury should be duly thankful.

TOBY O'CONNOR MORSE

Runs until 17 April. Box Office: (01722) 320333