NTLive: The Importance of Being Earnest (12A)
Screen 2, Sunday 23 Feb 2025, 14:00
- ends at 17:20
Three-time Olivier Award-winner Sharon D Clarke is joined by Ncuti Gatwa (Doctor Who; Sex Education) in this absolutely joyful reimagining of Oscar Wilde’s most celebrated comedy.
While assuming the role of a dutiful guardian in the country, Jack lets loose in town under a false identity. Meanwhile, his friend Algy adopts a similar facade. Hoping to impress two eligible ladies, the gentlemen find themselves caught in a web of lies they must carefully navigate.
Max Webster (Life of Pi) directs this hilarious story of identity, impersonation and romance, filmed live from the National Theatre in London.
This is a much more gender fluid and modern production than Wilde would ever have succeeded in getting onto stage, it's a "giant wink to the audience" to quote BBC R4's Front Row, which "achieves lift off and lightness" leaving the audience euphoric.