Set in an upper-class world of fops and dandies, Oscar Wilde's 'An Ideal Husband' questions the morality of the seemingly upstanding politicians of nineteenth-century England.
Government official Robert Chiltern's past returns to derail his career, when the conniving Mrs Cheveley reveals he once sold state secrets to potential investors. So begins a series of contrived misunderstandings and misconstrued love affairs, as the heights of perfection Lady Chiltern requires from her husband are threatened by his prior foolishness.
It takes a while for the cast of Charlie Ward's production to unearth the subtleties of character hidden beneath their melodramatic exploits, but once they do, the nuances of Wilde's writing really take hold. Sheridan Johnson makes a wonderfully nasty Mrs Cheveley, interspersing her relentless pursuit of scandal with glimpses of humanity. The scene in which she confesses her feelings for the lovable Lord Goring (Kieran Sims) is so convincing that you almost want him to ditch the coquettish Mabel (Emily MacDonald) and run off with the villain.
In a play that can easily slip into superficial tale of unlikeable dandies, Muckle Roe Productions manages to dexterously exploit Wilde's humour to present a hugely enjoyable show. A little slow starting, but a barrel of laughs.