Frank McKone attended Mrs Holt on Friday 8 August. If you missed his review in today's Times2, we have transcribed it below.

Beginnings and the end  
Frank McKone

Mrs Holt is a play of good intentions, about good intentions. Theatrically quite gentle, and almost old-fashioned in style, Chilver finds humour in the ending of a life, and hope in the beginning of a new love. Making no great demands on the intellect, it makes the point that assumptions about others, based on their social roles, are likely to be wrong.

Canberra Dramatics is an independent theatre with a small amount of community support.

It is pleasing to see effective casting for a range of ages. And looking physically right and costumed well, the setting in an early 1990s nursing home is believable. Mrs Holt (Gay Evans) thinks nurse Jack (Pete Ricardo) is a doctor and that her granddaughter, Rachel (Sarah Daphne), is barking up the wrong tree seeking promotion in her law firm rather than marriage and motherhood.

The script takes liberties historically. The nursing homes I knew in this period did not have such fully qualified staff in permanent positions. Mrs Holt's quick mind and analytical conversation were also a rarity. But Evans makes her into a central figure, taking control of her last days. Those who care for her learn to respect her independence and each other.

Scene changes were clunky, and the pacing a little slow last Friday, but the audience soon became engaged, responding to the humour, recognising the issues and applauding warmly.