Deftly directed by Sheila Mander, Bill Cronshaw’s intimate and highly enjoyable comedy might just as well have been called Educating Neil; there are more than a few echoes of Willy Russell’s classic play Educating Rita, as mature student Neil Thomas signs on at Tirton and gradually rediscovers himself after a nervous start. He soon runs headlong into the academic undergrowth of the university’s support services, unaware that one of them is managed by his own daughter. Cronshaw stars in the anchor role of Neil, playing it with a trademark air of infinite dryness and clearly revelling in the cleverness of his script, making even the blandest remark sound amusing. His face at times was an absolute picture, expressing our hero’s constant bewilderment at the unexpected twists through which his new educational enterprise guides him. Witty Meanwhile, Roseanne Brian was delightful as gracious, if occasionally straight-talking, counsellor-cum-earth mother Jane Moss, whale music ‘n’ all. Alexandra Chell negotiated her way impressively through the tricky role of Neil’s daughter Helen James, while Jilly Breeze walked tall as Dr. Stephanie Revell, Neil’s glamorous tutor with whom he forms a doomed relationship. Warm, witty and frequently moving, Ivory Towers passed its world première test with flying colours, and even prompted the title for a final year dissertation: Why are drunk scenes so unremittingly funny? Simon Lewis for BBC Radio Gloucestershire Theatre & Arts | 
