Politeness put to the test
THE EVERYDAY LIFE of a middle-class family is turned upside down when a surprise visitor arrives at their home. Her parents have met Elsa earlier on a cruise and have a heartfelt image of her. However, just before Elsa arrives, they come across allegations online about her questionable past, but at that point they no longer dare to cancel the visit.
“A very wild game develops between the different characters, and the situations are taken to the climax,” says director Milko Lehto. “It’s hard to write an entertaining and insightful comedy, but here we have succeeded.”
The Unfriend, written by Scottish Steven Moffat, premiered in 2022 at the Chichester Festival Theatre and then successfully moved to London’s West End. Moffat has become known to the general public for his TV series such as Doctor Who and Sherlock.
ELSA’S PRESENCE is an unbearable experience for the parents of the family, but they are so polite and restrained that they would rather endure their own uncomfortable feelings than ask a stranger to leave their home.
Lehto is fascinated by the fact that in Surprise Guest, the desire to please is stretched to the limit. “How funny people are when they can’t stop pleasing, even though the situation is an insane suffering for them,” he explains.
On the other hand, the visit also has positive effects. Elsa exudes joie de vivre and positive energy, which is why she is able to communicate naturally with the family’s teenage children – unlike their parents.
Lehto describes Elsa as the anti-Maija Poppanen. In P. L. Travers‘ classic fairy tale, Mary Poppins is asked to attend the family’s troublesome children, while in The Surprise Guest, Elsa arrives uninvited.
He manages to establish an immediate relationship with the offspring of the family. At the same time, he bridges the gap between parents and children and improves the internal dynamics of the family.
WHEN the couple finally summons up the courage to bring up rumors about Elsa’s past, she resolutely denies them. There is all kinds of false information circulating on the internet and there anyone can claim anything.
Elsa is also adept at addressing irrelevant issues and shifting attention from her own past to something else.
In Lehto’s opinion, the play is connected in a very funny way to the post-truth era, where there is no universal truth, but everyone can decide for themselves what they believe in.
“It’s cleverly and nicely written in the sense that these questions are pondered under the surface, even though they probably won’t be the first thing in the viewer’s mind,” Lehto says.
In his opinion, The Surprise Guest is an easily approachable comedy in the world of which there is nothing strange, even though the series of events that emerge from the surprise visit is.
“The comedy reflects this time perfectly, is amazingly perceptive and makes you forget about everyday worries.”
Text by Ida Henritius.