Directed by Stephen Boden
For acclaimed playwrights Sandor Turai and Alex Gal, their transatlantic journey from Cherbourg to New York should have been plain sailing. Their new musical comedy was all but finished - there was just the trivial matter of the ending to sort out - and their protégé composer Adam, who was rapturously in love with their exotic leading lady, Natasha Navratilova. Four days' sailing, a Broadway première, another smash hit: what could possibly go wrong?
As both ship and show hit heavy weather, the line between reality and musical comedy became increasingly blurred. Stoppard's deliriously funny play was an affectionate tribute to the Golden Age of sophisticated comedy. With jokes that would have delighted Coward, and songs that Irving Berlin might have penned, Rough Crossing was a feast of verbal wit, physical comedy, and sheer theatrical virtuosity that went down well with our audience.
