Were London Critics Wowed by Spacey & Ehle in The Philadelphia Story?

Kevin Spacey's first season as head of the Old Vic in London is ending with a revival of Philip Barry's The Philadelphia Story, starring Spacey and Jennifer Ehle. The production, directed by Jerry Zaks, opened on May 10. It has already been reported for a Broadway transfer, but did critics think the mounting was worthy of a move?

Here is a sampling of what they had to say:

Benedict Nightingale of The London Times: "With the help of [D.W.] Moffett's adoring hack, Spacey as the cool, relaxed Dexter, and Talulah Riley as her annoyingly precocious little sister, Tracy takes enough unaccustomed booze to thaw herself and appall her pompous fiancé, giving us a mini-scandal and a fairy-tale ending. Jerry Zaks's production is fluent enough, but can't hide the fact that Barry makes too little of his most promising comic situation, the pretence to the intrusive journo that Tracy's bottom-pinching uncle is actually her father; but then it's not well motivated in the first place. Julia McKenzie, Nicholas Le Prevost and others add lustre to the evening, but only Ehle is truly excellent. Whatever the cavils, she's an Artemis with a bit of Amazon in her heart--and, it emerges, a touch of Dionysus in her soul."

Nicholas de Jongh of The Evening Standard: "Too often you are left savouring the lack of fizz in this limply pointed production by Jerry Zaks. Anyone who hankers for Cary Grant and Katharine Hepburn memorably falling in love all over again in the film version of The Philadelphia Story or its musical transposition into High Society… should reach for their DVDs rather than depend on this unlively concoction. However, we are offered the moderate, comic pleasure of Spacey… After Hepburn on celluloid, all arch and artificial as Philadelphia heiress Tracy, Jennifer Ehle offers a fresh and terrific attraction… She transmits real pathos. By turns priggish and vulnerable, she seethes with old resentments as she confronts her unwanted fiancé, her unloving father and a desired new man. Unfortunately this psychologically convincing approach rather starves the comedy of the oxygen of frivolity and amusement."

Charles Spencer of The Telegraph: "[In the first half hour] Ehle in particular seems dismayingly subdued as the posh, rich heroine... And D W Moffett… seems devoid of James Stewart's compensating aw-shucks charm… Mercifully things begin to pick up before the curtain falls on the first act. Nicholas Le Prevost turns in a comic tour de force as the boozy, bottom-pinching Uncle Willy, and then Spacey himself arrives… He is one of those actors you simply can't take your eyes off. He brings a much-needed jolt of electricity to Jerry Zaks's sluggish production, and a disconcerting sense of danger to the stage…. In his presence, Ehle's performance blossoms too, and though she still short-changes the audience when it comes to wit, she displays a heart-catching vulnerability in the great central act when first Dexter, and then her father, upbraid this cold queen of high society for her intolerance of human frailty."

Michael Billington of The Guardian: "Barry's play is amiable, butter-bland stuff… Wisely, Jennifer Ehle makes no attempt to impersonate Hepburn; and she is very good in the early scenes at capturing both Tracy's lordliness and starched sexiness. She also conveys Tracy's pain at being cruelly told by her scapegrace father that what she lacks is 'an understanding heart'. But, although Ehle has Tracy's moneyed style, I missed the melting eroticism of the scene where she drunkenly unbends with the adoring journalist: Jerry Zaks' fastidious production never quite captures the sense that we are seeing a new, more emotionally generous woman… It is, in short, a mixed evening. It looks pretty enough in John Lee Beatty's designs and passes two and a half hours perfectly pleasantly. But there are many better American plays demanding revival."

Paul Taylor of The Independent: "Jerry Zaks' handsomely designed production turns out be a respectable hit-and-miss affair. Though the part feels significantly shorter than in the movie, Spacey makes a strong, mischievous impact, oozing laidback dangerous charm as the playboy CK Dexter Haven, who insinuates himself back into the upper-class family home of his socialite former wife, Tracy Lord, on the eve of her remarriage to a parvenu coal tycoon. Jennifer Ehle, playing Tracy, is no Katharine Hepburn. Her patrician put-downs and imperious manner lack the right thoroughbred comic spirit. Her de haut en bas manner should come across as effortless, but here you can sense the strain. She is a great deal better at conveying Tracy's scalded hurt and surprise when she discovers that people regard her as a cold virgin goddess…. In the Jimmy Stewart role, as the snooping journo who becomes a rival for her favours, DW Moffett communicates the anti-toff chippiness but leaves out the charm."