Review: The Invention of Love (Hampstead Theatre)

Review by Evan Prenter

⭐️⭐️⭐️

How long does it take to work out the meaning of life? Three hours including interval according to Tom Stoppard, with time for a few digressions on whether truth lies in science or imagination, whether virtue belongs to young women or men in battle, and whether there is still a place for love between comrades. Of course that’s a huge simplification with which playwright, Tom Stoppard, and his subject, the poet and classicist A.E. Housman, would no doubt take issue, but I’m not sure there’s any other way to write about a play as complex as The Invention of Love.

A biographical play which starts with Housman’s death, the play wanders through memories and imagined scenes as Housman is rowed across the River Styx. Glimpses of his time as an undergraduate at Oxford bump up against scenes from his humdrum days at the Patent Office and lectures from his years as a professor at UCL. In between, we see debates between famous Victorian academics on the nature and importance of art and academia, and later discussions between Labouchere (a politician) and journalists about a bill passing through Parliament and Labouchere’s amendment to that bill, which led to the prosecution of many gay men for their sexuality, including, famously, Oscar Wilde.

It’s all very highbrow, unashamedly so, and at times the intellectual dialogue works well, creating contrast between the cynical debates of the older men and the passionate feeling of young Housman, and even greater contrast with the plainspoken Jackson, the object of Housman’s unrequited love. Stoppard’s dialogue is witty, but the moments of simplicity amongst all the cleverness are the ones that have the greatest impact, such as Housman’s opening line as he waits for his hooded boatman: “I’m dead then. Good,” or the moment when a friend finally says the unsayable about Housman and Jackson: “He’ll never feel the same.” That said, for me the balance weighed a little too heavily towards academic discussion; there’s only so much I can listen to men who like the sound of their own voice talking in theoretical circles before I start to lose the plot slightly.

Fortunately, Stoppard doesn’t lose sight of his destination, somehow managing to make the journey through Housman’s life seem inevitable despite all the detours. Helped by clever direction and design from Blanche McIntyre and Morgan Large, the transitions between scenes are seamless. In particular, the detachable rowing boat is a stroke of genius that allows the young Housman to drift past his older self without requiring any set change.

Across the board, the performances are superb, but the two Housmans, young played by Matthew Tennyson and old(er) by Simon Russell Beale, are undoubtedly the stars. Tennyson captures the young Housman’s deep feeling as well as his slide into cynicism in the second half, and Beale manages to deliver a perfect performance of a crotchety old academic without ever falling into caricature or losing a sense of the emotion beneath the clever surface.

Around these two pillars, the rest of the cast whirl, many playing multiple parts and well-known historical figures. Dickie Beau is a brilliantly arch Oscar Wilde and provides the perfect foil to Beale’s Housman – one brazen; the other contained; and together with Tennyson, Ben Lloyd-Hughes and Seamus Dillane as Jackson and Pollard have great chemistry, making completely convincing university pals.

The costumes are lovely; the set is great; it’s very hard to find fault with this production. The problem is the play. I wanted less debate and more plot; less wit and more emotion; and maybe just…less? As far as I’m concerned a play has to be really special to justify a three hour running time and this one didn’t meet that bar. Perhaps the issue is that I’m not the audience for this play – my university challenge score isn’t quite high enough – but it’s a shame because I don’t think you should need a PhD to appreciate good theatre and a cast this talented should reach a broader audience.

All in all, I really wanted to love The Invention of Love, but in the end it left me a bit cold. On the plus side, if late Victorian academia comes up on University Challenge I might finally get something right.

The Invention of Love plays at Hampstead Theatre until February 1st 2025

For tickets and information visit https://www.hampsteadtheatre.com/whats-on/2024/the-invention-of-love/

Photos by Helen Murray