Separate tables

Separate tables - summary/review

Separate tables is a play which is set in the mid 1950s in a Bournemouth hotel and starts off in the dining room. Mrs Shankland (a journalist) goes to a hotel which was recommended by her editor but by "coincidence" her ex husband is there. Mr Malcom; her ex husband, is angry when he finds out his ex wife is staying in the same hotel as he is. Mrs Shankland tells him it is just coincidence but her editor sent her there knowing full well her ex husband is there and letting her know he was there too.

Mrs Shankland and Mr Malcom argue through most of the play but towards the end, they start to fall in love again. Mr Malcom is aggressive towards Mrs Shankland throughout most of the play until they fall in love again.

Major Pollock an ex major, is found guilty of harassing women in a cinema by making sexual advances on them. He greatly regrets his actions and does not know why he did it as he did it more than once. His friend Sybil Railton-Bell who is the granddaughter of Mrs Railton-Bell, is highly dissapointed but she forgives him. Towards the end of the play, he decides he wants to move to a hotel in London, because people at the current hotel are ashamed of him. He is terrified of meeting new people and having to live a new life. At the end it is stated that he is staying in the Bournemouth hotel much to the delight of Sybil.

Mrs Shankland and Mr Malcom get back together and ask for a double table in the dining room which shows that their relationship has rekindled.

What I liked most about this play is that each different character has a different personality and come from different backgrounds but they all seem quite high class.

The main factors that I liked about this play is that there was a lot of humour even though the messages could be quite deep and maybe connect to other people's lives. The set was quite small and had quite a dim light which made it seem like a relaxed dining room area and gave it that 1950s look and feel. The dining room set looked quite high classed and fitted in well with the characters. The stoyline was easier to follow towards the end when each character had been introduced well enough. The costumes were very well thought out and you could see that the play was set in the 1950s.

The only thing that I didn't like that much was that the storyline was hard to follow until towards the end. There was a different situation introduced in most of the scenes but some were easier to understand than others.

Overall, I thought the play was very well done and I would recommend this play to everyone.

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2 Comments

  • Bhavesh Jadva

    On 24 April 2016, 15:26 Bhavesh Jadva Voice Team commented:

    Love a classic love triangle! It sounds like the play couldn't possibly get any more British sounding, either!

  • On 28 April 2016, 12:22 [Deleted User] commented:

    I totally agree! I love how the characters showed clearly that they were brits by their personalities...and of course the tea drinking!

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