Theatre review: Entertaining Mr Sloane

Everyman, Cork

Joe Orton’s 1960s domestic farce, Entertaining Mr Sloane, was considered risqué when it was first staged, with its homo-eroticism and the insatiable sexual appetite of the sole female character, Kath. To a contemporary audience, it’s not shocking but a source of mirth, with its depiction of the hypocrisies of lower middle-class English life and the sexual shenanigans of Mr Sloane and Kath. Kath’s brother, Ed, is a repressed homosexual who fancies Mr Sloane.

The good-looking, blond 20-year-old of the play’s title is referred to as ‘Mr Sloane’ even by his lover, Kath, who is twice his age and his landlady. Her formality is curious, given her relationship with the dodgy lodger. Having lost a child earlier in life, Kath refers to Mr Sloane as her ‘baby’. It’s a twisted relationship, unwillingly entered into by Mr Sloane, who refuses to take responsibility for anything, referring to himself as impressionable, easily-led and an orphan.