Striking similarity: Zoe Wanamaker as Helen in Two Ladies
[Helen Maybanks]
HENRY BELL is fascinated by the underlying curiosities and contradictions of one of the great poets of the Mediterranean
DAVID RENTON recommends a books that explores the ways in which disabled people are made to feel both of and not part of this world
JONATHAN TAYLOR is fascinated by the philosophical problems that permeate the art of life-writing
GORDON PARSONS steps warily in between the lines of Britain’s most famous diarist
SIMON DUFF recommends a recording of Arvo Part that takes the listener on a pilgrimage through seemingly distant times and events of the Bible
LOCKED down in a conference room overlooking the Cote d’Azur, the wives of the US and French presidents await the outcome of a summit conference debating joint military retaliation for terrorist acts in the US.
Zoe Wanamaker’s Helen, the previously married, considerably older wife and former teacher of her husband, bears striking similarities to Brigitte Macron while Zrinka Cvitesic as Sophia, the Yugoslavian born ex-model, is not a million miles from Melania Trump.
And their relationships with their husbands also mirror the current first ladies’ apparent roles — the first plays an active part in presidential political life, the latter is a trophy wife to be flaunted in public.
SIMON PARSONS is taken by a thought provoking and intelligent play performed with great sensitivity
