Review: ENTERTAINING MR SLOANE, Young Vic

There’s a lot of pressure on an Artistic Director’s first production at a new venue, especially if they’re directing it themselves. Nadia Fall kicks off her tenure leading the Young Vic with a revival of a classic Joe Orton play, promising ‘seduction and devilish wit.’ But could this show seduce its audience?

Entertaining Mr Sloane takes place in a 1960s family home, right on the edge of a rubbish dump. In it lives Kath (Tamzin Outhwaite), a farcically promiscuous housewife, her brother Ed (Daniel Cerqueira), and their elderly father Kemp (Christopher Fairbank). Their domestic lives are turned upside down when the young Mr Sloane (Rizzle Kicks’ Jordan Stephens) joins them as a lodger, and enters a strange, sexually charged triangle with the two siblings.

This is very much a play of its time – it’s the kind of theatre people think of when they hear the word ‘play’, full of comedically timed walk-ins, criminal backstories, and unrequited romances. Fall’s revival leaves it bizarrely lodged in the past: there’s nothing about this production that makes it clear why this play is worth watching in 2025, with potential themes of bisexuality and xenophobia left at the wayside. It feels as though this production could have been made any time in the past sixty years, in terms of both the play’s themes and the way it is staged.

One of the highlights of the show, however, is the set. Peter McKintosh’s design has rickety black furniture suspended from the ceiling and stacked up around the edges of the circular stage, creating a visual picture that’s both striking in its own right, and helps to situate the play. Regrettably, though, it’s somewhat underused: it feels as though the hanging items should at some point slowly descend, or even come crashing down, in a way that they never really do. There’s also the matter of the stage revolve: it’s fun, sure, but only really used in two moments, making it feel almost like it’s only there for the sake of it.

This is an issue with many of Entertaining Mr Sloane’s creative choices. It’s often visually impressive, but lacking in thought and depth. Stephens’ Sloane is sometimes seen spotlighted in neon green or purple, doing slo-mo choreography, but it never really amounts to anything. There’s even a start of act two club scene, which, while very cool (impressive lighting from Richard Howell) feels at odds with the rest of the piece. The ending sequence, again, is fun in its own right, but the creativity exhibited there is lacking in much of the rest of the piece.

As far as the cast are concerned, Outhwaite’s Kath is the obvious standout. From her first entrance, she’s a larger-than-life, almost caricature-esque version of the scheming housewife. She manages to find the right balance between bringing out the humour in the script and poking fun at its stereotypical nature, excelling at the physical comedy in the piece. Stephens, in his first major stage role, is a fairly convincing Sloane, all charm and eyebrows. He does lack the magnetic force, menace, and stage presence needed to fully make it clear why Kath and Ed are so impossibly drawn to Sloane, but it’s a solid debut performance.

Cerqueira’s Ed falls somewhat flat in the wake of these two bigger personalities, but it’s less a flaw in the actor’s work and more in the production’s approach to the character. Ed’s homoerotic relationship with Sloane, in theory one of the more interesting parts of the story, is played down hugely here, making the characters’ relationship far closer to that of just boss and employee, or father-figure and son. There’s a throwaway gag about limp-wristedness, but it feels like a missed opportunity to interrogate the inherent queerness of the play. On a similar note, throwaway lines highlighting the characters’ racism felt out of place, and quite uncomfortable in the wake of London’s recent demonstrations. 

For all its flaws, Entertaining Mr Sloane is, well, entertaining. The tried-and-tested jokes get plenty of chuckles, it’s visually impressive, and the story’s pacing means it keeps the audience on board throughout. For those with a love of classic plays or farce, there’s plenty to enjoy. As a season opener in 2025 though? It leaves a lot to be desired. 

Entertaining Mr Sloane runs at the Young Vic until 8 November

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