‘The Unfriend’: STC Elevates This Fun Farce Beyond Its Limits

Key points

• Steven Moffat's farce The Unfriend, staged by Sydney Theatre Company, takes aim at British politeness through an American houseguest who ignores unspoken rules. The reviewer finds the sharp dialogue and strong cast entertaining, though the play feels overlong and at times too absurd.
• Helen Thomson, playing the forthcoming American Elsa, is singled out as the production's standout. A subplot involving a neighbour and a shared garden wall is praised as the play's most subtle and effective critique of social niceness.
• The Unfriend runs at Sydney Theatre Company until October 31.