Review: THE LINE OF BEAUTY, Almeida Theatre

An award-winning LGBTQ novel, adapted for the stage by playwright of the moment Jack Holden (Cruising; Kenrex)... It sounds like a surefire hit for the Almeida, and sure enough, the entire run is currently fully sold out. But can a production be too sure of itself? Slick but straightforward, this premiere bucks the venue’s recent trend of plays that push the envelope.

Originally published in 2004, and adapted into a TV drama two years later, Alan Hollinghurst's The Line of Beauty follows Nick Guest (Jasper Talbot), a middle class Oxford graduate who goes to live with the family of his much wealthier university friend Toby (Leo Suter) and his Tory MP father (Charles Edwards). Set in the 1980s, the story follows Nick’s coming of age as an openly gay man in the beginnings of the AIDS crisis, grappling with a divided life and divided priorities.

The Line of Beauty is full of big, richly painted characters, and so it’s no surprise that the performances are the highlight of this production. Jasper Talbot, who recently finished his run in West End-bound Inter Alia, slips ably into the skin of the ‘chameleon’ Nick, shifting from nervous guest to cocky boyfriend. He remains remarkably grounded throughout, with the character’s ‘sitting on the fence’ attitude making the part a delicate balancing act. This can mean, however, that he gets overshadowed by the more out-there roles. 

Ellie Bamber as Cat is a prime example of this, delivering her often outrageous lines with relish, dripping with privilege and girlishness. Similarly excellent is Charles Edwards as MP Gerald, who is chillingly familiar as an outwardly friendly but morally bankrupt father and politician. An unexpected standout comes in the form of Arty Froushan as Wani, who first appears as a suave, coke-dealing rich boy, before gradually unveiling layers of complexity and emotion. As cliche as it is to say, there’s truly no weak link in this cast. Every actor delivers the kind of assured, polished performance that would be very at home on a West End stage or a cinema screen. 

But herein lies the issue: the combination of Holden’s adaptation and Michael Grandage’s direction is too assured and too polished, cleanly plucked from the pages of the novel. This is an uncharacteristically traditional piece of theatre for the Almeida: it follows a chronological two act structure, with 80s music covering scene transitions and set changes, and fairly literal set and costume design. It’s difficult to fault as such, as everything is executed to perfection, but there’s a certain lack of imagination running through the heart of the piece.

This is all the more felt due to the play’s themes of art, beauty, and love. It’s bursting at the seams with poetic language and profundity, but this never bleeds through into the play’s form. The straightforward approach leaves the concept feeling disjointed, as well as dulling its emotional impact – it leaves the story beats feeling predictable even to those unfamiliar with the source material. 

In the show’s programme, director Grandage speaks about many of the team’s personal experience of and connection to the AIDS crisis. In some ways, The Line of Beauty does the crucial job of introducing new generations to the realities of the crisis in UK history. This really is a story that grapples with issues of hypocrisy in the worlds of politics and sexuality, as well as the nuances of the British class system - there are moments of brilliance, but it does feel like the show could have engaged with the relationship between past and present more dynamically. 

The Line of Beauty will speak to fans of the book, and to the Almeida’s older audience. It’s undeniably a high quality, crowd-pleasing production – but the venue’s recent ambition has raised the bar, and this show lacks the sense of innovation and wonder it has proved itself capable of creating. 

The Line of Beauty runs at the Almeida Theatre until 29 November