Jerome K. Jerome’s famous 1889 book, Three Men in a Boat, has been adapted for the stage many times, most recently at the Mill at Sonning, just a short drive from Reading Rep. However, Camille Ucan’s script gives it a very fresh feel as Three Hens in a Boat, taking inspiration from the basic idea as three generations of one family take a similar journey west along the Thames towards Reading (described in jest in the play as a “sh*thole”). The conversations of the Hen Party give a very different perspective to that told by the three Victorian gentlemen.
Jasmine Swan’s idyllic setting gives a strong feel of the riverside down which they row, with willows drooping in the river, a beautiful backdrop, and a clever effect giving a sense of the river’s flow. It’s perhaps the most evocative set we have seen at Reading Rep and sets up the play neatly. The skiff that they row is practical, although it does need to be manually manoeuvred by the cast between scenes, and the best scenes are when it is tied up by either bank. More could have been made of the physical comedy opportunities that camping and rowing offer.
Three Hens in a Boat features Grandma Claudette, played by Ellen O’Grady, a Guyanese midwife immigrant via Trinidad; her daughter, Gloria, an artiste, played by Verona Rose; and the granddaughter Jay, played by the author herself, a student in Edinburgh. Claudette is engaged to Trevor, Gloria is engaged to Rowena, and Jay is engaged to Liam—although Claudette tells everyone her daughter is marrying Rowan so she can still attend her church. As they attempt to row up the river, tensions are exposed and secrets revealed, and we speculate about how Art Gallery Gary fits into the story. The three actresses successfully portray the generational differences of their characters and the tensions between them.
Their conversations touch on many modern themes—fad diets, failed marital relationships, climate change, manifesting, cancer, racism, the wokeness of Disney animations, and crusty knickers—with plenty of bad language thrown in. The resulting one-liner jokes generate plenty of laughs along the way, but at its heart, it is a play about mother and daughter relationships and their drifting apart as they lead their own lives and grow up.
Three Hens in a Boat has a warm, modern charm, with a strong local connection through references to Windsor and Henley, which resonated with the Berkshire audience and generated plenty of laughs from a largely female crowd. Overall, it is a pleasant evening messing about by the river, and at £23.50 for an adult ticket, it is good value for money.
Listings and ticket information can be found here.
