Oct. 10 (Bloomberg) -- Kevin Spacey flung his arms open to hug the frail playwright Alan Ayckbourn after his show ``The Norman Conquests'' in London. Instead, he knocked over the 69- year-old Ayckbourn, who walks with a stick.

The resulting moment of shock and uneasy laughter -- as the shaken writer smiled to indicate he was fine -- seemed appropriate after an evening of disturbingly painful humor.

There was theatrical pain of a less memorable kind elsewhere, as Michael Gambon struggled through Harold Pinter's ``No Man's Land.'' The sweet sounds of a fabulous new concert hall and the superb Shakespearean talents of David Tennant (``Doctor Who'') offer ample compensation.

Ayckbourn's ``The Norman Conquests'' (1973) is a cycle of three interconnected comic plays which present a fraught middle- class weekend from several different points of view.

Technically, it's a tour de force: Characters leave the dining room in ``Table Manners'' to walk into the lounge in ``Living Together.'' A prop in one play reminds you of a scene that happens later but that you saw earlier.

Emotionally, too, it packs quite a punch. Ayckbourn draws plenty of laughs from a planned illicit weekend going farcically wrong. Yet he also devastatingly exposes the anger and despair of his six characters.

Sometimes their wounds are so raw, in fact, that you wonder why you're laughing at all.

The Old Vic theater has been temporarily transformed for the production with the financial help of hedge-fund manager CQS U.K. LLP, founded by Michael Hintze.

The acting space is now where the stalls used to be, and what was previously the stage is used for seating. With Rob Howell's simple 1970s designs, the in-the-round layout creates an effective sense of intimacy and voyeurism.

Longueurs

There are one or two longueurs in Matthew Warchus's production, though none in ``Table Manners,'' the best of the three plays.

If you want to see only one of ``The Norman Conquests,'' make it this one.

Hopefully you'll be conquered enough to see the others. Rating: ***1/2.

``The Norman Conquests'' trilogy of plays is in repertory at The Old Vic. For information: http://www.oldvictheatre.com or +44- 870-060-6628.

Rich Old Drunk

Harold Pinter's ``No Man's Land'' (1974) gets an underpowered revival at the Duke of York's Theatre.

Michael Gambon plays Hirst, a rich old drunk, who invites seedy poet Spooner into his mansion.

Two rough servants occasionally make veiled threats at them. It's all terribly Pinteresque.

Gambon sometimes replaces acting with self-conscious comic gestures. As one of the servants, David Walliams (``Little Britain'') is about as threatening as a little lamb. Not ideal. Rating: **.

``No Man's Land'' is at the Duke of York's Theatre. For details, see http://theambassadors.com/dukeofyorks or call +44- 870-060-6623.

Stratford Masterclass

For a real thespian masterclass, head to Stratford-upon-Avon to see David Tennant as Berowne in ``Love's Labour's Lost.''

The Royal Shakespeare Company production is in 17th-century costume and takes place on a bare stage.

Though plenty of moments are beautifully done, a few fall flat. Yet whenever Tennant is on stage, his delivery is so thrilling, so true and so alive that energy levels are guaranteed to soar.

To watch his character squirm when caught out in a lie, or create magic with a speech on the mystery of love, is to see Shakespearean comedy at its best.

Rating: ***.

``Love's Labour's Lost'' is at the Courtyard Theatre, Stratford until Nov. 15. Tennant then stars as ``Hamlet'' at the Novello Theatre in London from Dec. 3. For more information: http://rsc.org.uk or call +44-844-800-1110.

Warm Acoustic

The capital's classical music scene was changed forever last week with the opening of Kings Place, a new venue which includes two concert halls, galleries and exhibition spaces. A concert of Schubert lieder sounded heavenly in the oak-paneled 420-seat hall, and revealed a warm acoustic with plenty of potential for chamber recitals.

Miraculously, the whole project hasn't cost a penny of public funds. It is funded by seven floors of high-tech office space directly above. Though only a few steps from King's Cross St. Pancras station, it is surrounded by lapping water on two sides and has an excellent bar too. I can't wait to go back. Rating: ****.

For more information: http://www.kingsplace.co.uk or call +44-844-264-0321.

(Warwick Thompson is a critic for Bloomberg News. The opinions expressed are his own.)

What the Stars Mean:
****       Excellent
 ***       Good
 **        Average
 *         Poor
(No stars) Worthless

To contact the writer on this story: Warwick Thompson in London at warwicktho@aol.com.

Last Updated: October 9, 2008 19:31 EDT