Review: Fun And Mayhem at Faulty Towers – The Dining Experience

PUBLISHED April 14th, 2015 04:00 pm | UPDATED June 12th, 2020 10:51 am

Based on popular British sitcom Fawlty Towers (1975-1979), Faulty Towers – The Dining Experience premiered in Singapore last week (9-12 April 2015), which I had the privilege of attending. Having made its rounds around the world since its start in Brisbane in 1997 as Interactive Theatre International, I went in not know what to expect – except that it’d be an evening of funny antics and some mayhem!

The Backstory – Fawlty Towers

It’s been nearly 40 years since the irascible Basil Fawlty and his long-suffering wife Sybil first appeared on British television in a 12-part sitcom set in a crumbling seaside hotel in Torquay. The sitcom writers, John Cleese, who played Basil, and his then wife Connie Booth (Polly the waitress), based the series on a temperamental real-life hotelier encountered on location by the cast of Monty Python. It became a cult classic.

Today, Fawlty Towers is still consistently nominated as one of the funniest programs of all time, frequently topping polls of viewers and industry insiders. Its success hinged on the interplay between the eccentric, snobbish Basil, who had aspirations to run a high-class establishment but was foiled in his ambitions by the “cretins” who were his guests, his bossy wife, and their bumbling Spanish waiter Manuel. The latter’s poor grasp of English led to slapstick humour and, more often than not, a jolly good thrashing at the hands of his hot-tempered boss. While the series was a send-up of a peculiarly British snobbery, Fawlty Towers was a hit on both sides of the Atlantic and sold to 17 countries in 1977 alone.

In the original series, one of the marvelous running gags was the misspelling of the name ‘Fawlty Towers’, some notable examples being ‘Farty Towels’, ‘Watery Fowls’ and ‘Flowery Twats’. In this case, however, the name is spelt with a ‘u’ – no doubt to avoid legal confusion as well as an unofficial tribute to the legendary sitcom.

As a testament to its popularity, the interactive show is touring 20 countries in 2015, as well as continuing a long-standing residency in London’s West End and returning to Sydney Opera House and the UK’s Royal Albert Hall.

The Dining Experience

The premiere in Singapore saw the characters of Basil, Sybil and Manuel brought to life by Ron Kelly, Suzanna Hughes, and Andy Foreman respectively.

The evening began well enough. The actors got into character as soon as they entered the foyer a few minutes before the performance started. Having ordered our drinks at the pricey bar, Basil Faulty, (with a ‘u’, remember!), started brusquely ushering in the guests, warning about mobile phones, while Sybil ran about getting things ready and Manuel awkwardly waited on guests by pelting them with peanuts. We were told to wait until Basil called our names and table number in the “Restaurant’ –  the Casurina Suite at Raffles Hotel.

The impersonation of the characters was impressive. The actors were all spot on with their characterization and sounded just like the originals – John Cleese would be really impressed! Only the character of Polly is absent and we were told it was her ‘night off’.

Once seated, we were thrust into the show. Basil began yelling at Manuel to serve the bread rolls, who misinterpreted the order as one to roll on a plate. There were more antics and mishaps with the bread rolls – Basil banging them down on the table, Manuel throwing them at the guests, while Basil yelled at him and bickering among Basil and Sybil.

It was, after all, an interactive performance where the actors and the audience ‘interact’. Only a third of the show is scripted and there was some hilarious improvisation with the characters checking up on tables, chatting and poking fun at some of the guests at the restaurant. Manuel provided a lot of the comic fun. He stood on a table and encouraged the audience to sing ‘Viva Espania’ and then got a lady to pretend to be a bull while he acted as a matador with the napkin. There was some man handling of guests but, fortunately, everyone entered into the spirit of the event and were good sports.

There were also references to the less than competent, alcoholic chef manning the kitchen, who apparently dropped a pair of false teeth in the soup by accident. This resulted in Manuel visiting the tables and stirring the guests’ soup to check for the teeth and then running round the tables again to hurl parsley (‘the garnish’) into our soup. The Raffles Hotel waiters at the ‘Restaurant’ blended in with the performance and served everyone promptly, while the actors played their parts.

Suzanna Hughes as Sybil was particularly good. She had Sybil down to a T – the voice, the hairdo, the frilly blouse and bubble-gum coloured shoes. She bossed Basil around, wanting to know why guests had not been seated yet, why Manuel was taking people’s glasses away from them when they hadn’t finished drinking, and apologized for Basil and Manuel (‘He’s from Barcelona’). She also informed us when the Chef would be sober enough to get us our meals on time! And she has the most Sybil-sounding laugh I’ve ever heard from anyone other than Prunella Scales. She even gave an off-key rendition of ‘Happy Birthday’ for two guests in true Sybil fashion while Basil rolled his eyes and stuffed a handkerchief in each ear!

There were longer set pieces between courses, which were loosely recreated classic scenes from the series – the fire drill and pet rat (also called Basil).

The trio were energetic and convincing impersonators, expertly nailing Cleese, Scales and Sachs’s voices and mannerisms. They really carried the evening off by mingling seamlessly with the diners and making sure to involve them in the action. The skits were not well linked but I chalk it down to the ad-hoc improvisation.

The food served was pleasant but definitely not haute cuisine. The soup was tasty, but the chicken and vegetable main course were unremarkable – and the gravy tasted suspiciously of marmite. Was it meant to be faithful to the ‘Dining Experience’? I guess I should be grateful that we were not served bland British dishes that were popular in the 1970s! The only real let down was the pricing for the evening which seemed high for what it was. This was a comment echoed by several guests at my table.

Despite its flaws, this show delivers exactly what it promises – a night of fun and entertainment for fans of the sitcom, a two hour trip down BBC comedy memory lane. If you loved the TV show (and let’s face it, who didn’t?) this is an experience not to be missed.