‘Restoration for the new generation’ – a bold claim, but I think Marooned Theatre’s production of The Provoked Wife pulls it off. It is the second of John Vanbrugh’s comedies, after The Relapse, and it’s characters are considered more complex – adapted for the new company of greater skilled actors chosen for its premiere. The play follows the story of the abusive alcoholic Sir John Brute (Will Kelly), his unhappy wife Lady Brute (Meg Coombs) and their family and friends. Exploring themes of marriage, love, and reputation, Vanbrugh’s play has been dropped right into the middle of a 21st Century music festival – but how well can a 300-year-old text transfer to a modern day setting?

Besides the intermittent dancing to random records from the UK Top 40 such as Drake’s Hotline Bling, and the cast in costumes including Velvet Underground shirts, boat shoes and playsuits from Topshop, the idea that we are in 2017 is sometimes entirely forgettable as there isn’t much in the writing to demonstrate the difference between society then and now. It would be entirely believable, if translated into modern language, that this was a story of today. The Provoked Wife feels familiar, perhaps worryingly so considering the way in which the women of the piece, particularly Lady Brute, are discussed and treated.

The cast are all brilliant, with Will Earle as Constant and Jessie Lilley as Lady Fanciful being particularly memorable. Earle is charming and endearing as Lady Brute’s dashing young love interest, while Lilley is wholly ridiculous and funny as Lady Fanciful. Her vanity is made modern with constant selfie-taking and being preened to perfection. Tim Gibson as Heartfree perfectly executes Vanbrugh’s brilliant writing as the emotionally detached bachelor lives up to his name, and brings colour to any interaction with other characters. The language pours from the cast’s mouths – you can feel that they know the text inside out, which makes dialogue natural and easy.

I’m not sure why, but I always marvel at old texts that are as accessible and entertaining today as they were, say, half a century ago. They share the same woes as us, only they tend to express their sentiments better. The Provoked Wife is one of these timeless texts in which we can recognise ourselves in the characters, and under Hannah Boland Moore’s direction, we can place ourselves in their shoes with even more ease. Restoration for a new generation, indeed.

The Provoked Wife is playing at The Hope Theatre until September 23.