A ROOM WITH A VIEW

BBC’s dramatization of Forster’s comedy of manners about English tourists in an Italian pensione boasts a superb cast directed in the “Masterpiece Theatre” manner by Glyn Dearman. The production’s personality reflects house style more than Forster’s, though dramatist Wade admirably uses radio’s capacity to communicate the inner life of the characters. The producer, however, makes no use of radio’s ability to suggest atmosphere and place; the soundscape is utilitarian and unconvincing. On the other hand, the acting is sheer music, especially the delicious impersonation of the eccentric novelist, Miss Lavish, by Barbara Jefford. Y.R. ©AudioFile, Portland, Maine [Published: MAR 97]