People power with Thame Players  

Round & About

Helen Johns tells us about Thame Players’ next production, People by Alan Bennett, at the Players theatre, 9th-13th September 

People spoil things: there are so many of them and the last thing one wants is to have them traipsing through one’s house. But with the park a jungle and a bath on the billiard table, what is one to do? Could an attic sale be a solution? 

Thame Players’ next production is People by Alan Bennett, which opens on Tuesday, 9th September. After centuries, a traditional stately pile lies in a state of disrepair, desperately requiring financing to restore and maintain the once grand residence. Lady Dorothy, an ageing aristocrat and ex-model, lives in this crumbling mansion with her companion, Iris, and shrinks from the idea of it being opened to the public gaze. She’s nostalgic for a world in which everything, including herself, is allowed to decay naturally. She’s even tempted by an offer from a valuer, representing a shadowy consortium, to transport the house to Dorset or Wiltshire. 

Meanwhile, Dorothy’s gruff sister, June, is close to doing a deal with the National Trust, which will make the house a piece of English history, filling it with racily interactive features. 

But a third possibility arises when a film company arrives to use the residence as a location for a porn movie. Lady Dorothy would rather sell off the contents or even allow explicit films to be made at the house, in order to save it from the grips of the National Trust. June wholeheartedly disagrees. This central conflict focuses on the philosophical and ethical dilemmas of restoration, in an age of rampant public consumption, with hilarious and touching results.  

People was premiered at the National Theatre in 2012. It features Bennett’s characteristic humour and pathos, and deals with themes explored in his other works. These include the challenges of old age – a sense of being abandoned by society. There’s also a strong sense of challenge to “the establishment”, a questioning of whose establishment it actually is. And, as usual, there’s a narrative of class: institutions such as the National Trust and the Church of England are complicit in maintaining a class structure serving no-one, not even the people who apparently benefit. 

Steve Lambell, who directs People for Thame Players, says: “This is a fascinating play, which critics have described as “provocative fun”. Bennett takes a swipe at the National Trust and has stated that the play was inspired by his sense of unease while visiting a National Trust house. The Telegraph critic said, “Bennett has lost little of his mischievous wit and sense of the ridiculous, and the result is entertaining, funny and touching”. For an entertaining evening, book your seats now!’