Stage Dragon Review: The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel at the Yvonne Arnaud Theatre

Published on: 26 Apr, 2023
Updated on: 26 Apr, 2023

By Ference Hepp

The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel is well known to many from a 2012 film featuring Dame Judi Dench, Bill Nighy and Maggie Smith, among other famous names, originally based on the novel These Foolish Things by Deborah Moggach.

The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel at the Yvonne Arnaud. Picture by Mikal Ludlow Photography at the Everyman Theatre, Cheltenham.

This national tour, now at Guildford’s Yvonne Arnaud Theatre, is directed by Lucy Bailey, featuring some well-known cast members, including Belinda Lang (2 Point 4 Children, Oklahoma), Paul Nicholas (Jesus Christ Superstar, Just Good Friends, EastEnders), Tessa Peake-Jones (Only Fools and Horses), Graham Seed (The Archers, The Mousetrap), Rekha John-Cheriyan (Four Weddings and a Funeral, Tomb Raider, Hollyoaks), Nishad More (King Lear, My Mother’s Wedding) and Marlene Sidaway (Coronation Street, Pride and Prejudice).

The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel at the Yvonne Arnaud Theatre Picture by Mikal Ludlow Photography at the Everyman Theatre, Cheltenham.

The set design by Colin Richmond is the outside of a very authentic looking Indian-style hotel, with a visible reception area, and it is obvious that it is not in the best state.

The play opens with mother and son (John-Cheriyan and More) mourning the passing of Mrs Kapoor’s husband, and the decision to turn the house into an exclusive hotel. This is where the retirees arrive as a group, looking for a fresh start, with all of them having different ideas about what they want to get out of this adventure.

The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel at the Yvonne Arnaud Theatre. Picture by Mikal Ludlow Photography at the Everyman Theatre, Cheltenham.

The characters are all very distinct and portrayed with a great deal of humour, as well as an abundance of sentiment.

Madge (Lang) is desperate for a man, whereas Muriel (Sidaway) is just miserable and wants a rest. A good description of what each of these characters are looking for is summarised by Evelyn (Peake-Jones) quite early on, when she says: “I never had a chance to be another sort of person.”

This is their chance to finally be who they want to be and accomplish things they never had a chance to accomplish in their lives at home. This also rubs off on the owners of the hotel, and there is great chemistry between John-Cheriyan and More as mother and son.

The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel at the Yvonne Arnaud Theatre. Picture by Mikal Ludlow Photography at the Everyman Theatre, Cheltenham.

They are also responsible for a lot of the humour in the piece, when attempting to keep their guests happy as the hotel delipidates around them. The guests start off being polite but end up being honest about the poor quality of the food, as well as their surroundings.

The script rather cleverly ensures that different characters interact with each other in a very natural way throughout, and the direction makes use of the whole stage with numerous entrances and exits, which still feels natural as opposed to farcical.

The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel at the Yvonne Arnaud Theatre. Picture by Mikal Ludlow Photography at the Everyman Theatre, Cheltenham.

The majority of the scenes are quite short, occasionally I did crave for more dialogue and detail, but the delivery is natural and of a high standard. The themes explored are numerous, condensing a lengthy period into two and a half hours, and these do not only include what you expect from a bunch of retirees, but so much more.

I shall credit the best summary to the director, Lucy Bailey, who describes the play as “a paean to old age – and how the future can still bring surprise and transformation. It also portrays the instinctive connection between the old and the young – and gives us hope.”

The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel runs until Saturday, April 29. Tickets are available online here or at the box office on 01483 440000.