Springwood
Hampstead Theatre, London
⭑⭑⭑⭑⭑

THERE is a simple setting but multilayered intrigue in this depiction of a pre-war meeting between the US president, the British king and their wives.

The meeting at Springwood, the home of the Roosevelt family, is set in 1939, as Britain is about to be drawn into the war with Germany. The US is the powerful country that Britain needs. President Franklin Roosevelt indicates he wants to offer his support but, at that time, politically the isolationist US could go either way.

Springwood depicts a fascinating meeting that sees the two men delving into personal insecurities, while the wives, Eleanor Roosevelt and Queen Elizabeth, seem the politically astute operators.

The two men bond over disability: Roosevelt is wheelchair bound due to polio, the king has his stutter. The queen feels under pressure, given she and her husband have replaced Edward VIII and his US wife, Wallace Simpson, in the monarchial role. Queen Elizabeth is keen to know what the US really wants, while Eleanor Roosevelt questions British actions. Are the Roosevelts just setting up the British monarchy for ridicule?

Some criss crossing of lines ensues, with the king interrupting the president in bed with the governess.

The simple set moves between bedrooms, sitting room and a set-piece picnic — for the consumption of the great US public. Much is made of the hotdogs on offer.

The idea that this meeting was the start of the “special relationship” is somewhat far fetched. The special relationship has been mainly about the US exploiting Britain’s failure to accept it no longer has an empire or a real world role. That Britain is a junior partner in a relationship of unequals at best. The way in which Rooservelt cleverly used the war to relieve the British of their empire, which then ceded to the US, is not covered here.

The reality today is of a nuclear weapon that the US controls but the British taxpayer funds, and US bases across Britain that almost make this country a colony of the US. That said, the play could also be held to ridicule the whole idea of a special relationship.

Springwood is well worth seeing, with some fine performances from Robert Lindsay (Franklin Roosevelt), Jemma Redgrave (Eleanor Roosevelt), Andrew Havill (King George VI) and Rebecca Night (Queen Elizabeth).

Writer and director, Richard Nelson cleverly constructs a multilayered production, encapsulating international politics, personal insecurity and the frictions in relationships. It raises some intriguing questions of power, perception and human relations.

There are inklings in this production of the dynamics of the Roosevelt marriage and presidency, plus the monarchy of George VI, but it would be fascinating to know more, especially regarding what really made Roosevelt tick. While that would be a different play, this one is well worth seeing.

Runs till July 25. Box office: (020) 7722-9301, www.hampsteadtheatre.com.