Good Night, Oscar is a biographical play about Oscar Levant, a famous pianist who was also a noted wit and raconteur. The script starts as a dead-safe comedy and it develops into a gripping battle between the forces of anarchy, represented by Oscar, and the controllers of NBC who want to censor his crazy humour.

The backstory is complicated. Oscar has been secretly committed to a mental asylum and his wife gets him released for a few hours so he can do an interview on Jack Paar’s TV show. It takes two long scenes to explain this improbable set-up but it’s worth it because Oscar (Sean Hayes) is such a lovable character. He’s a total wreck, addicted to drugs, suffering from OCD, and afflicted by aural and visual hallucinations that leave him curled up on the floor like a baby. He can’t drink a cup of coffee without stirring it clockwise and anti-clockwise eight times.

This is a rare and glorious kind of show

Although he’s treated as a star, he has no illusions about his talent. ‘Underneath this flabby exterior is an enormous lack of character,’ he says. And he finds comfort in his mental health problems. ‘Schizophrenia beats dining alone.’

Before the........

© The Spectator