Books: Critical condition
After twenty years as the Guardian's drama critic, it is only to be expected that Michael Billington should have a fairly solid grasp of recent theatrical history. At first glance, that's exactly what One Night Stand offers: a collection of his reviews from the period 1971-91, organised chronologically to provide a detailed study not only of the landmark shows of the period, but also of the development of British theatre.
More than that, the reviews thamselves are interspaced with useful interlude essays in which Billington examines significant details of each year in question, not only focussing directly on theatre itself, but also on the political, social and intellectual changes in society that were to have an effect, such as, in 1972, the wave of new writing concerning the political crisis in Ireland. From a purely scholarly point of view, One Night Stand is unmissable.
So far, so educative-but-dull. However, there is far more to Billington's book than a simple potted history lesson. Charcterised by a style that marries elegance and insight, the reviews are well worth reading purely for entertainment value - not to mention the wealth of anecdotal and personal interest tales, such as the account of Billington's attempt to direct a play himself (Marivaux's The Will) with less than total success.
Billington is perhaps not a writer who has received his own full critical recognition yet. He is less flashily witty than some, more inclined towards serious and intelligent analysis: his is not a voice that everyone will warm to. But for a keen idea of what a given production was actually like in first performance, a review that is more than a mechanical churning-out-of-copy, and the very real sense of a man who loves the form and knows what he's doing, you probably won't get very much better.
sb