 No stranger to productivity, Carlo Goldoni wrote more than 150 plays. His works have been described as transforming the traditional Italian commedia dell’arte into a more structured and realistic form, introducing social and moral themes to the stage. His plays are known for their wit, vibrant characters, and sharp observations of Italian society of the time.
Despite his prolific output, I am pretty sure the only play of his I’d seen previously is The Servant of Two Masters in its updated incarnation as One Man, Two Guvnors – though I have seen three separate productions of that. So based on the knowledge of this one work, I was confident that I knew what to expect when it came to settling down to watch The Fan. I was looking forward to a cheery evening of a fairly implausible plot with some jolly comedy, running about – perhaps falling over? Mistaken identity. Anyway I was mostly right and not at all disappointed.
 Flavia Di Saverio did an excellent job of approaching this piece with a true appreciation of commedia dell’arte’s rich history and comedic tradition. I couldn’t help feeling that the cast must have had a lot of fun in rehearsal - and that’s not a bad thing. The characters aren’t what you’d call subtle or nuanced, but they were still a delight to watch. I particularly enjoyed Sean McMullan’s Coronato – pompous, and yet somehow endearing and Catalina Lütz as the spirited and assertive Susanna. Matthew Ibbotson, as Conte di Rocca Marina, gave a good comic interpretation of an Italian nobleman. I very much liked his style.
 I found one or two of the actors a little soft-spoken and hard to hear at times, but generally all embraced the silliness of the plot and everyone got into the physicality and knockabout nature of the piece with real gusto.
 It was an impressively international cast as well! I don’t know that I have ever seen such a range of nationalities on the Tower stage. A number of the cast had trained and performed in other countries – so there was a rich mix of national theatre traditions being brought to this piece which gave a real vibrancy and dynamism to this production.
Initially, I was a little mystified by the “play within a play” that opened the second act (while also being entertained by it). I did a bit of research and learned that these mini dramas (I guess a feature of the genre?) allow the audience to quickly grasp the personalities, relationships, and conflicts that will be central to the main plot, providing a sort of "preview" of what's to come. It was nicely done and gave some of the previously underused characters the opportunity to show off some excellent physical comedy skill.
 Petra Wonham’s set, which was beautifully lit by Samuel Littley, was glorious. The colours were warm and rich and the detailing of the floor was stunning. I don’t know if the pointy double doors are a particularly Italian architectural feature, but I felt as though they were. A whole lot of love went into that set and it showed.
The costumes (by Emma Efkeman and Jackie Robinson) were also an excellent feature of this show. The costumes and set complemented each other beautifully and there was a clearly a thoughtfully chosen colour palette at work here. I hate to pick favourites, when everyone was so well-dressed, but Sangita Modgil as Signora Geltruda, had a stunning dress which was wonderfully suited to her classy performance.
 I liked the sound that underscored the action and was used cleverly with some dramatic lighting to highlight key plot features and important props (like the fan, obvs). It was neatly done and very effective.
While enjoying the play very much on its first night, I could see that a few performances in, when the team were settled into it, it would be even better. Although unable to come back for a repeat visit to see the show, I was in the theatre a couple of nights later, at the end of the evening, and there was really buzzy atmosphere in the bar with the audience clearly having loved it.
Perhaps we’ll do another of Goldoni’s plays in the future? There are clearly plenty to choose from.
Photography by Jason Harris
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