ROXY KRASNER AND THE CASE OF THE SOVIET SUBMARINE

ROXY KRASNER AND THE CASE OF THE SOVIET SUBMARINE

The College Players at the Brentwood Theatre

28.09.13

Here's Roxy – back for another "totally unbelievable" ripping yarn of international skulduggery.

The superb set has an imposing fanlight [classy back projections behind] which opens to form the submarine. Or in one priceless sequence, three simultaneous subs, crewed by three shades of foreign foe.

Not everything is as brilliant as this, and we are served some very ancient gags indeed, but style and polish make up for a lot, and it is good to welcome back some masters of the genre: Darren Matthews' laid-back dick, Lindsay Hollingsworth as his lovelorn side-kick secretary, keeping fans and first-timers up to date with her stream-of-consciousness soliloquies. June Fitzgerald and Elaine Laight are here again as the Salmon Sisters, while Paul Sparrowham reprises his lecherous Larry, memorably struggling into a lamé fish-tail in a moment of pure, filthy farce. Indeed the shade of Carry On is never far away, with some risqué wordplay from our author, Anon.

Among the denizens of Hollywood: Emma Feeney as a rasping Mabel, Hannah James as English Gwen, James Wild – cod-piece as impressively engineered as the U-boat's conning-tower – as Rodney, Claire Hilder as dancing diva Lola, and Bob O'Brien brilliant as the Leg-Man, tasked with humping mermaids around the sound stage …

Oh yes, there are mermaids, and they do tap-dance. The glorious plot involves Easter Island and Fabergé eggs - it's produced and directed by Sue Welch and Nick Wilkes. Will this tie up the trilogy, or will it become a franchise like the Road pictures or Dick Barton ? Well, there's a hefty clue at the end of the show – let's hope Roxy Pirelli [née Krasner] will bounce back soon in the mystery of the pink bird …