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A review by beccakatie
The Rivals: A Comedy by Richard Brinsley Sheridan
3.0
Although this play may have not received a warm reception the night of its first performance, I did enjoy it. I found it a good portrayal of the stereotype of elegant Georgian society, and it was a light read. Although its plot was made up of a number of different tropes, many of them over used in common literature, The Rivals put them to good use, combining them and switching between plots in a simple yet effective way.
It cannot be stated that this is a particularly remarkable play, there is nothing that stands out about it to make it a great work compared to many others, but it is an enjoyable portrayal of the Georgian upper class at Bath, caught up in pleasure, romance, and honour. I feel that it cannot be stated that it 'luckily' ends with everything resolved and without tragedy, as, once again, it adheres to the tropes and expectations of literature of that period, with a happy ending, all confusions untangled, all happiness restored, in a very predictable but overall tidy and satisfying way.
It cannot be stated that this is a particularly remarkable play, there is nothing that stands out about it to make it a great work compared to many others, but it is an enjoyable portrayal of the Georgian upper class at Bath, caught up in pleasure, romance, and honour. I feel that it cannot be stated that it 'luckily' ends with everything resolved and without tragedy, as, once again, it adheres to the tropes and expectations of literature of that period, with a happy ending, all confusions untangled, all happiness restored, in a very predictable but overall tidy and satisfying way.