 In 1930 Noël Coward cast Olivier as Victor <unk> in his new play Private Lives , which opened at the new Phoenix Theatre in London in September . Coward and Gertrude Lawrence played the lead roles , <unk> Chase and Amanda <unk> . Victor is a secondary character , along with Sybil Chase ; the author called them " extra puppets , lightly wooden <unk> , only to be repeatedly knocked down and stood up again " . To make them credible spouses for Amanda and <unk> , Coward was determined that two outstandingly attractive performers should play the parts . Olivier played Victor in the West End and then on Broadway ; Adrianne Allen was Sybil in London , but could not go to New York , where the part was taken by Esmond . In addition to giving the 23 @-@ year @-@ old Olivier his first successful West End role , Coward became something of a mentor . In the late 1960s Olivier told Sheridan Morley : 
