Award-winning director Denzel Westley-Sanderson’s vibrant retelling of Oscar Wilde‘s sharpest and most outrageous comedy, The Importance of Being Earnest, comes to Northern Stage from 4-8 October.
Melding Wilde’s wit with chart-toppers, shade and contemporary references, this fresh new co-production from Leeds Playhouse, ETT and Rose Theatre offers a unique insight into this classic satire about dysfunctional families, class, gender and sexuality.
Denzel won the change to direct the show as the recipient of the Royal Theatrical Support Trust’s Sir Peter Hall Director Award 2021. Here he tells us about his love of live performance and what Wilde might have made of this vibrant new version of his comedy.
What is about theatre as an art form that particularly appeals to you?
I love film and TV but it’s the ‘liveness’ of theatre and the interaction in the space that really excites me. It’s a beautifully expressive art form, a way of telling amazing stories, and everything happens right in front of you. If something goes right, if something goes wrong, the audience is part of it. It’s a great feeling to be part of a collective sharing the space and the experience. Everyone has different opinions and emotions about what they’re seeing, but they are experiencing it together- with the actors and each other. It’s a real connection. When you see real people on stage- when you can see the sweat-it makes everything real and you can completely invest in it.
You’ve brought together a tremendous cast for The Importance of Being Earnest. How are you approaching working with them in the rehearsal room?
They’re a great bunch; all so different. But that’s exactly what you need to create exciting work. I’m really interested to see what Daniel (Daniel Jacob) does as Lady Bracknell. And I’m also excited to explore the relationship between Dr Chasuble and Miss Prism with Anita (Anita Reynolds) and Joanne (Joanne Henry). I believe it’s the first time that a production has explored their relationship in this way. As well as playing with the genders of the characters, I’m excited to see all the possibilities that this lens will bring to the production.
Was it an obvious choice of play for you to direct?
I was reading the play and thinking about how it was relevant to me – what could I get from it. When you dive into the text, it’s so witty and brilliant and clever. It spoke to me and I just thought ‘yes, I need to give this a go’. Wilde was such a smart writer. There’s so much in the text; so much to play with and bring out. I also thought it could be really fun because there’s a lot going on beneath the surface with his characters. It’s about people trying to live their lives and to fit into society, which is still incredibly relevant now.
“It’s about people trying to live their lives and to fit into society, which is still incredibly relevant now’.
How important is it to you to put Black history in the spotlight and to encourage people- particularly young people- to explore Black History pre-Windrush?
I was told at school that we came over on the Windrush and that was it. When I started researching Black Victorians, it opened up a whole new world. I knew then that I had to keep the setting real. This happened. These people existed. I wanted to look at Victorians as people- people who could be relaxed in their own home, who laid on the floor and yawned if they felt like it. They weren’t always upright and uptight; they were messy just like us. And there were Black Victorians who were wealthy living in England. It feels really important to me to look through this particular lens. It’s about people, but those people can be viewed through various lenses.
“It feels really important to me to look through this particular lens. It’s about people, but those people can be viewed through various lenses’
You’re also taking a gender fluid approach to some of the characters and relationships in the play, creating an exciting new layer for contemporary audiences to enjoy. Do you think Oscar Wilde would approve?
I hope he’d like it. Like him, I believe that rules are made to be broken and boundaries are there to be pushed. He was put in prison for being a homosexual after doing this play, and some of the changes I’ve made- in both casting and the gender of some characters- explore this element a little more. I want to say ‘look where we are now’. We wouldn’t have been allowed to explore these things in time. Hopefully now as a society, we are slightly better- slightly; there’s still some way to go.
“I believe that rules are made to be broken and boundaries are there to be pushed”.
What do you hope audiences will take away from your version of the play? And what discussions do you hope it prompts?
The play is a wonderfully silly comedy, so the most important thing is that it brings joy. But it’s about reclaiming truth, and honouring truth. I hope it opens up the conversation so that people start to think about Black Victorians and their place in our history. If seeing Black people who look stunning in Victorian dress, who were rich, who weren’t just on the plantation, prompts some curiosity about Black Victorians, I’ll be very happy.
