Wedding from Hell is Comedy Heaven

DOrfman at the national theatre

A well-received run at the small Dorfman studio at the National Theatre led to a West End transfer. Here’s why the critics thought Beth Steel’s story of a wedding party which exposed illicit relationships and old grievances was so good.

5 stars ★★★★★

The Telegraph‘s Dominic Cavendish was pleased to ‘get that rare thing, a family drama about the white working-class today, with ramifications for us all, taking in the impact of immigration, financial insecurity, and uncertainty, plus love, death and the whole complex kaboodle of getting through life. It’s often deliriously funny, but also has a stabbing sense of insoluble pain.’

The Guardian‘s Arifa Akbar loved the way ‘the wedding party whirls into melodrama of a high order – rollicking, complex and bearing the tragic inevitability of Greek drama.’

LondonTheatre‘s Marianka Swain called it ‘properly funny, fiercely loving and piercingly perceptive …It’s a state-of-the-nation drama told through the prism of one family, and a generational tale boiled down to one day; brilliantly specific in its references, yet universal in its hilarious, heart-stopping storytelling.’

Sarah Crompton at WhatsOnStage said a ‘sense of vitality fills the entire play and the richness of every character … gives a superb ensemble cast roles to play with their entire heart and soul. Their warmth, their subtlety and their ability to portray a family in love and at war make this rewarding, utterly unmissable play a theatrical event to remember. It’s sensational.’

4 stars ★★★★

The Times‘ Clive Davis was delighted that ‘Beth Steel’s debut for the National…plunges us into the middle of a clan whose passions, jokes and prejudices are utterly authentic.’

The Standard‘s Nick Curtis pointed out: ‘It’s no accident that the play centres on three sisters; Steel creates a Chekhovian blend of comedy and tragedy, amped up by booze and ribald East Midlands bluntness. One of these women married a man because he looked at her “like a potato in a famine”.’

The Observer‘s Susannah Clapp described how ‘Sheibani’s production brims with vivacity. How wonderfully the stage heaps up with stuff – from hairdryers to cheese hedgehogs – and is gradually drained. How spot-on are Samal Blak’s costumes: the tight scarlet satin frock, the wedding dress that gapes. How marvellously a first-rate cast pull together as their characters pull apart. And just look at Lorraine Ashbourne and Lisa McGrillis suddenly recognising in each other, though decades apart, the same lost loves and lives. Those of a struggling post-industrial Britain.’

Fiona Mountford at the i-paper found ‘Bijan Sheibani’s lively, loving, in-the-round production revels in the earthy humour of Steel’s script, which instantly convinces in its depiction of family dynamics.’

‘I loved its sweaty honesty, its big, generous canvas, its energy and its deep sympathy for its characters. Steel resists easy answers too,’ said Sarah Hemming in The Financial Times. ‘the muscular immediacy of Steel’s dialogue is undeniable, with laugh-out-loud lines flung about like confetti while hearts quietly break. It’s a gloriously messy affair, compassionate, hilarious, and tangy with fear and longing,’ said Sam Marlowe in The Stage.

The Independent‘s Alice Saville began: ‘A pair of elasticated Spanx pings into a near-hysterical audience in the first act of Beth Steel’s zingy comedy, set at a small town Northern wedding where all decorum breaks down. It’s typical of the cheeky spirit of this crowd-pleasing play – but peel off the layers and there’s tragedy underneath.’

Time Out‘s Andrjez Lukowski was critical of the way the Polish groom was portrayed, saying, ‘As much as anything else it’s just frustrating to have this sloppiness in an otherwise meticulous play. ‘Till the Stars Come Down’ is a funny, heartbreaking piece of writing, wonderfully acted, tenderly directed… except when it isn’t.’

Average Critics’ Rating 4.7★

Value Rating 56 (based on Dorfman reviews and West End typical price)

Till The Stars Come Down premiered at the Dorfman in early 2024. It will have a limited run at the Theatre Royal Haymarket from 1 July 2025. Buy tickets direct here.

Read Paul Seven Lewis’s review of Till The stars Come Down at the Dorfman here

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