2015 – The Importance of Being Earnest

Described as ‘A trivial play for serious people’, there is absolutely nothing trivial about the enduring success and appeal of this play. First performed on St Valentine’s Day 1895, the play was ap­plauded for its wit by some, and criticised by others for that very triviality, which is so much a part of its charm.

There has been much debate and discussion about covert references to homosexuality and venereal disease, but what is quite overt is Wilde’s apparently making light of the serious subjects of marriage and christening, death and religion, as well as much well-informed satire on the social conventions of the day. It also deals quite blatantly with the question of money – a subject which was rarely discussed in polite society. Indeed money was a force which drove the play from without as well as within, as Wilde was in urgent need of money when he wrote it.

In August 2015 The Riverside Players visited Rendcomb College in the Cotswolds.