Good Night, Oscar

Concert pianist, film composer, talk show host, comedian: for a man so used to sitting on one, it’s amazing how much of Oscar Levant’s career fell between so many stools.

Good Night, Oscar is inspired by a real-life episode, although the word “inspired” does plenty of heavy lifting here. Levant (Sean Hayes) is released from a mental health facility to go on the late night Tonight show fronted by Jack Parr (Ben Rappaport). The host is launching a new show for the West Coast and wants something special to mark the event. To that end, he asks Levant to be one of his guests. Parr has had his friend on before and knows exactly what he will get: a highly unpredictable stream of no-filter witticisms about every taboo subject under the sun, be it politics, religion, sex or Levant's own well-publicised mental health issues.

Hayes is the star turn here and the success of this vehicle revolves around his ability to bring Levant to life. The Will & Grace actor is all in for this portrayal, presenting a man barely able to sit or stand still and possessed of an ever-racing mind. Whether he is constantly rocking back and forth, forever twirling or sucking on a permanent cigarette or verbally ejecting whatever is crossing his mind at that moment, Hayes carries off this committed full method performance up there with the likes of Day Lewis, Hoffman or Brando.

Doug Wright’s play zips along with zingers aplenty but finds time to excavate an emotional centre and explore wider issues. It had a run in 2023 in Broadway’s Belasco Theatre and transfers with a cast that is - Hayes and Rappaport aside - completely refreshed. As his long-suffering wife June, Rosalie Craig plays a pivotal role in getting Levant out of the hospital and into the studio, lying to the staff in one and begging those in the other to put her husband where she thinks he functions best: in the spotlight and behind a piano. It’s a heart-rending performance that belies the thinness of Wright’s writing in regard to the female characters. Through her, we see the effect of Levant’s illness not just on himself but his family and his career.

Studio bosses of the era - ever a stereotypical combination of greedy capitalist, arse-covering micro-manager and moral censor rolled into one dark suit - are represented here by Richard Katz in sterling form as Bob Sarnoff. Watching him lay down the rules to Parr as to exactly what he can and (more importantly) can’t discuss with the notoriously controversial Levant (and then watching Parr ignore those rules once live on air) is as predictable as it is funny. Seeing Sarnoff get slowly more wound up and go from stern and serious to a volcano spewing sweary lava is pure comedy and Katz sells it well.

Amid the gags and merriment, there are some uncomfortable angles in all this. It is clear how much Levant loves being in front of an audience but how much are Parr and June milking the ill man’s talents for their own needs? And how accurate is this blunt portrait of a man who carries out lengthy conversations with an imaginary Gershwin? A breathtaking seven-minute section at the end which sees Hayes pull off a thrilling rendition of Rhapsody In Blue is the standout scene but, as we file out, the questions remain.

Good Night, Oscar continues at Barbican Theatre until 21 September.