Audiences can reliably bank on Hugh Bonneville, who delivers a warm and solid incarnation of bashful, faintly grumpy Britishness in his latest role. The cuddly star of Downton Abbey and Paddington Bear sets the stage with comforting familiarity, much like a full English breakfast prepares one for the day ahead.
Portraying a Literary Legend
Bonneville now takes on the character of CS Lewis, the great writer of the Narnia stories, in the West End transfer of Chichester Festival Theatre's 2019 revival of William Nicholson's biographical drama, Shadowlands. He embodies Lewis as a reclusive, emotionally stunted, 50-something Oxford don who sought refuge in tweeds, literature, and the church.
A Star Turn from Maggie Siff
Yet the true standout of this production is Maggie Siff, best known for her role as Damian Lewis's therapist Wendy in the television series Billions. Siff plays Joy Davidman, the interloping American who turned Lewis's world of dusty regimentation and closeted, anti-American misogyny completely upside down.
She achieves this transformation not by driving a horse and cart through ancient college protocols, but through quietly determined love and progressive cups of tea. Resistance is significant, particularly from Lewis's jaundiced fellow Oxford don Christopher Riley, who complains bitterly about Americans failing to understand English inhibition.
Siff's character bats him off as either 'offensive or merely stupid,' and Lewis finds himself utterly enchanted by the light and colour she brings into his previously monochrome existence.
Exploring Profound Themes
Tragedy looms with a diagnosis of terminal cancer, positioning the play to ask why God allows suffering. In a series of soliloquy-lectures delivered to students, Lewis ponders whether God uses suffering as a megaphone to rouse the spiritually deaf, or if he might actually be a 'cosmic vivisectionist.'
Unashamedly tackling these substantial philosophical questions, the production does so with thoughtful wit and, surprisingly in Rachel Kavanaugh's nostalgic staging, a modest amount of spectacle. Yards and yards of tall, dreaming bookcases yield to visions of Narnia beyond, suggesting possibilities of an afterlife.
Stage Chemistry and Future Prospects
While Bonneville proves himself a dependable old stick in whom audiences place their trust as they join him on his journey through faith and despair, it is Siff he must thank for illuminating both his character and the stage with her performance. The chemistry between them elevates the production, leaving many to wonder if Broadway might be the next stop for this compelling revival.
