Edward Dick's revival features many of the same actors who appear in Romeo and Juliet, but while they were lacklustre in the latter they are more than adequate here.
Perhaps the presence of Janie Dee as a melt-in-the-mouth Olivia and Clive Rowe as an insanely sweet-throated clown, Feste, makes everyone else raise their game, because while this is a long way from capturing the bitter sweet heart of this melancholy comedy, on a warm summer's evening, it will wash down very nicely with a glass of wine.
Dick's production is clear, unfussy, has a pleasing fluidity and often places the actors to draw attention to the emotional space between them. If it initially treats the play as a bit of a romp - with Tim Woodward's Sir Toby Belch and Clive Hayward's Sir Andrew Aguecheek appearing to be fully paid-up members of the Bullingdon club - it does get darker, turning into an interesting meditation on love.
Claire Benedict's no-nonsense Maria clearly has her eye on Sir Toby from the outset, while Oscar Pearce's petulant Orsino is as much in love with the idea of love as the lovesick Romeo is with his Rosaline.
But the star here besides Fotini Dimou's 1930s costumes is Dee, whose Olivia thaws from ice-goddess into a ripe woman dizzy with love and longing.
The final unravellings of the plot are handled deftly and with a light comic touch. Although this may not be a classic production, it is an intelligent one.
· Until July 30. Box office: 0844 826 4242.
