The Massive Tragedy of Madame Bovary, Southwark Playhouse Borough Review
The Massive Tragedy of Madame Bovary. Photo by Tanya Pabaru
Written by Bronagh for Theatre and Tonic
Disclaimer: Gifted tickets in exchange for an honest review
Content warnings: swearing, mentions of suicide, childbirth
We’ve all heard of Madame Bovary, but have we heard of the massive tragedy OF Madame Bovary? The saucy Emma (Georgia Nicholson) thinks all of her Christmases have come at once when she meets and marries the bumbling, respectable village doctor Charles Bovary (Darren Seed). Decadence, travel and luxury await her… or does it? Settle into your seat at the Southwark Playhouse Borough and prepare to be transported to France to witness the tragedy for yourself.
It is worth noting that The Massive Tragedy of Madame Bovary is playing Southwark Playhouse Borough’s Christmas slot; although not your traditional Christmas show, it certainly has elements of pantomime. Starting with some flapping about, bawdy humour, breaking of character and addressing the audience, some very interesting prop usage… it’s almost surprising we don’t shout ‘he’s behind you!’ at any point (cue the joke about the horse riding in the forest scene. If you know you know). A special mention to Georgia Nicholson’s breaking character and speaking in her native Geordie accent. As a fellow Geordie, this almost felt like a nice, warm hug.
The performances are full of comedic genius. Nicholson and Seed are joined by Stephen Cavanagh and Ben Kernow playing a multitude of characters aided by lots of quick outfit and accent changes. The entire show flows extremely well, despite the (scripted) halts and audience addresses; these could go direly wrong and appear very stop-start but in the case of Madame Bovary they really worked and added to the bawdiness of the show. The framing device of the ‘rat catchers’ also works a treat, pulling us from the past to the present ensuring no stone is left unturned in Madame Bovary’s retelling of the tale.
I’m sure a lot of us know the story of Madame Bovary, or at least aware of the uproar it caused at the time of publishing. The Massive Tragedy of Madame Bovary doesn’t shy away from the sex and lust of the original novel, and we also see the sadder side of the tale. Madame Bovary who just wants more than her boring husband gets excited by peas and lancing abscesses. She dreams of glamorous silks, which then results in debt, and of a spicier relationship, which then results in her looking elsewhere for her kicks. We see Madame Bovary rush around looking for arsenic, showing the sadder side of the tale.
The Massive Tragedy of Madame Bovary is staged in ‘The Large’ which is, in fact, still quite intimate. The set changed between a variety of settings, from family homes to lavish mansions to a room in an inn and the aforementioned forest. The set changed seamlessly, through the opening of shutters and cabinets and moving around boxes which acted as chairs and also, horses. This is a great use of the smaller space.
The Massive Tragedy of Madame Bovary brought me so much joy and is such a gleefully silly watch. This is perfect for the Christmas season if you don’t fancy your average pantomime, but still want some good old fashioned, silly, bawdy fun.
At Southwark Playhouse Borough until 11th January 2024.
★ ★ ★ ★
