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Noises Off at the Old Vic Reviews

Noises Off has a reputation as a truly indestructible comedy - a farce that is at once blisteringly funny and beautifully eloquent about the precarious nature of theatre. In Lindsay Posner's deftly engineered revival, Michael Frayn's play feels fresh, witty and polished. The writing delights in disorder and a fine ensemble gives poised performances.

Verdict: **** Henry Hitchings – The Evening Standard (read the full review here)

By the end you feel that every possible permutation of the things you can do with plates of sardines, malfunctioning telephones, dodgy dialogue, libidinous actors, dropped trousers, and shoe laces that have been maliciously tied together has been comprehensively explored. And the comic invention is so prodigal that there are moments when you are no longer certain quite what you are laughing at. All you know is that you can’t stop.

Verdict ***** Charles Spencer – The Telegraph (read the full review here)

It really is all terribly well done. But why do I hesitate to give it an unreserved rave? Because, I think, the play is, at its core, an in-joke for theatre professionals. The characters will be more familiar to actors than to civilians, if we can put it like that. That is my only quibble. Otherwise, good stuff.

Verdict: **** Quentin Letts – The Daily Mail (read the full review here)

If we continue to roar with laughter, not least during the farce's final collapse, it is for several reasons. It is because Frayn understands the recalcitrant nature of stage props. It is because disaster achieves its own unstoppable momentum. But, deep down, it is also because Frayn taps into our simultaneous delight in, and fear of, panic, disorder and chaos.

Verdict: ***** Michael Billington – The Guardian (read the full review here)