Glorious
- Richard Evans
- 6 minutes ago
- 2 min read
Peter Quilter
Hope Mill Theatre production
Theatr Clwyd
May 26-30, 2026; 2 hrs 5 mins including interval
What do you make of Florence Foster Jenkins? A rich, quixotic socialite with the reputation of having the worst opera voice who still managed to fill Carnegie Hall? Was her audience laughing at her, or with her? Did she know she couldn't sing or was she in a cloud of blissful oblivion? Perhaps the force of her personality was what made people return to her recitals time after time. Or perhaps they just liked a laugh...
Peter Quilter’s Glorious doesn't actually answer these questions, but is a faithful portrayal of the major events in her remarkable "career".
Matthew Morrison plays Cosme McMoon, a struggling pianist recommended to the diva (Wendi Peters) to be her new accompanist. This starts a working relationship and friendship, as Florence pays him handsomely to play on her recordings, at her recitals and ultimately her final concert. Though secretly appalled by the nature of her voice, he nonetheless becomes supportive and appreciative of what she achieves.
Florence divides opinion. She carefully vets her audience to isolate critics, but is generous to those who show their appreciation. She seems to believe profoundly that her voice is appealing, but is also well aware of the criticism.
Wendi Peters is excellent at Florence’s force-of-nature personality, outgoing and indefatigable. She obviously prepared well to sing convincingly in such a flat voice - bringing to mind comedian Les Dawson's piano skills, deliberately twisted into an out of tune racket.
Matthew Morrison supports charmingly, at once timorous and intimidated by Florence, but also her support and confidante. Sioned Jones and Caroline Gruber complete the cast, Gruber in particular exhibiting a nice comic touch as Florence's cook.
The production is infused with gentle humour and pokes fun deliciously at the phenomenon of Florence’s voice. It refers to her philanthropic efforts, but could probably make more of how she was a patron of the arts, encouraging new talent and supporting female artists - she had a reputation for being a generous donor.
The play records a remarkable phenomenon; a person who became famous for lacking ability. There are other rare examples: Eddie "the Eagle", the ski-jumper, springs to mind.
I'm not sure I would want to be remembered for the things I'm not good at, but Florence certainly made the most of her "gift", and her story is memorable, making this a play well worth watching.
More info and tickets here
