STEEL MAGNOLIAS

STEEL MAGNOLIAS

Writtle Cards at the Village Hall

19.05.2016

Another appointment at Miss Truvy's Louisiana beauty shop, nicely tricked out in Writtle Cards' production, with a credible logo, beauty paraphernalia courtesy of Mack Hairdressers, and pink gingham tabards for the entire staff: Deb Sparshott's charming proprietress, a performance oozing period style, and new girl Annelle [Leila Francis] who loses her way and finds religion.

The Southern drawl was mostly very convincing, at least to a Limey ear; most successful were Truvy herself, and Louise Burtenshaw's sassy Shelby – one of the best I've seen, taking us with her on her emotional journey from her “blush and bashful” wedding through her rite of passage crop to her final exit.

She's absent, of course, from the closing scene – black clad, accessorized in pink – in which her distraught mother M'Lynn [a lovely performance from Sharon Goodwin] makes a heart-breaking big speech, movingly supported by the listening faces of the four ladies in the salon.

The one-liners are largely in the safe hands of Jean Speller's grumpy Ouiser and Paulette Harris's superb smart-mouthed recipe queen Clairee, resplendent in her Victoria-plum velours, harvesting the laughs with a knowing glance and a nifty inflection.

Slim Whitman and Jimmy Dean on Shelby's transistor radio, and Patsy Cline's That Wonderful Someone for the Chinquapin baptists. Steel Magnolias was produced by Daniel Curley, with Liz Curley in the director's chair.

STRICTLY SEX FACTOR ON ICE

STRICTLY SEX FACTOR ON ICE

Writtle Cards in the Village Hall

27.11.15

Among this year's festive invitations: The Nutcracker on Ice, and The Sword in the Stone reworked as a rock'n'roll panto. But nothing quite so outrageous as this – fictitious – entertainment on offer in Writtle.

Times are hard for Little Grimley Amateur Dramatic Society. Their ranks are thinning, talent is in short supply and audiences seem to prefer to spend their Saturday nights in front of the box. Hence these desperate measures. A sex panto – though I think Jim Davidson got there first with his smutty Sinderella – and a monstrous mash-up of talent shows off the telly.

The first play – Last Panto in Little Grimley – sees members of the group debating, very amusingly, the way forward. Four lovely performances here: Jean Speller as the hapless Joyce, Paulette Harris as the overbearing Margaret, Daniel Curley as the “ape man” stage manager and Nick Caton, loudly booed by the audience, as the ruthless director. The wonky word-processor gag seems lame, but there were many hilarious moments, not least the very recognizable round of “diary bingo”.

“There may be trouble ahead” warns Nat King Cole at the start of the second piece. Same characters, but renamed, recast and relocated to Writtle. From the subs bench we have Beth Crozier being overbearing, and new signing Marge Naylor as Joy, compelled to perform on roller skates, just like they never did in Cats. Jim Crozier is the autocratic dictator this time – a fine oratorical monologue – and, getting lots of laughs as the lad Barry, Chris Rogerson, wisely creating a character as far removed as possible from the consummate comedy of Mr Curley, whose use of a banana was a masterclass in hilarity. The choreographed scene changes work well, and I love the inflatable Tonioli on the judging panel.

Post-match stats – number of prompts – something of a hostage to fortune, perhaps, as is the cutting criticism of Simon Dupont, reviewer for another paper, who pens the kind of poisonous piece I shall write just before I retire ...

It's not Noises Off, or The Play That Goes Wrong, or even the Farndale Ladies. But it is a wickedly well observed look behind the amdram scenes, slickly directed by Liz Curley, and a great hit with the packed house in the Village Hall.

ENCHANTED APRIL

ENCHANTED APRIL

Writtle Cards at the Village Hall

25.06.15

Elizabeth von Arnim's charming novel was a popular success in the 20s – this stage version by Matthew Barber made something of a Broadway hit some eighty years later.

It's a sentimental piece, in which four ladies from the capital's middle classes, united by a longing for wisteria and sunshine, find both, and themselves, in San Salvatore.

There are nine scenes before the interval, four after. Barber suggests that the actors, or costumed servants, should manage the props. Difficult to achieve, but otherwise, as here, even an efficient stage crew will slow the action and lose the flow. He also suggests that the sea and the gardens should be imagined out behind the audience, presumably leaving warm stone-work and wisteria as a back-drop. Pete Goodwin's design effectively replaces the dull black and brown of London with a riot of colour for the Genoese coast, earning a round of applause for the big reveal after the interval. And the incessant sound of English rain is replaced by continental railways as Italy approaches.

Two very different ladies plot their escape. Jodee Goodwin's Pollyanna Lotty and Leila Francis's “disappointed Madonna” Rose, nicely contrasted in Nick Caton's production. A much more dramatic contrast between the other two women, who answer the advertisement to share the cost of the castello. “Donna Carolina”, Lady Bramble, is an elegant butterfly, played with some style and fabulous frocks by Shelley Goodwin, and the redoubtable Mrs Graves, delightfully done by Liz Curley, as she sheds her hat, her stick and her inhibitions in the Italian sunshine.

The owner of the villa is Chris Rogerson, Costanza the volatile maid, Sharon Goodwin.

The menfolk who eventually join the ladies in Liguria are Arnott, alias Florian Ayres, writer of “romantic biography” [Jeremy Pruce] and Wilton, a scene-stealing Daniel Curley, plucking his nasal hair and only just preserving his dignity with a bath towel. And his Italian, at least, was meant to sound mangled …

Some fine performances here, with Lotty's character sympathetically developed. But the middle-class metropolitan milieu sometimes proved elusive, and on opening night there was some insecurity in lines and names.

The ever-resourceful refreshment team had come up with Paradiso Punch this time, limoncello the secret ingredient.

THE CEMETERY CLUB

THE CEMETERY CLUB

Writtle Cards at Writtle Village Hall

25.02.15

Three Jewish widows keep a regular rendez-vous at the cemetery. They support each other; they bring gossip and grand-children’s photos.

The Golden Girls theme – by that nice Jewish boy Andrew Gold, now in an L.A. cemetery himself – sets the sit-com tone. The “pals and confidantes” here are wise-cracking Ida, [beautifully done by Liz Curley] man-hungry Lucille in her thrift-shop mink [a bold and brassy performance from Steph Edwards] and devoted widow Doris [touchingly characterized by Sharon Goodwin].

Most of the “action” takes place in Ida's sitting room, nicely realised for this production with a set that is both stylish and lived-in. But we see the Forest Hills “Perpetual Care” plots, too, on a little apron in front of the stage.

Paulette Harris's production wisely lets Menchell's dialogue speak for itself, but there are many telling moments of truth – Ida looking longingly at the mink in the mirror, envying Lucille's way with men, the sozzled home-coming after what must have been a great Jewish wedding, the show-down when Ida learns of her friends' duplicity, Lucille's phonecall to Sam [Daniel Curley], the timid kosher butcher “playboy” reluctantly caught up in the widows' net. Dee Irons plays Mildred, his temporary fancy-woman defence.

It's a sweet comedy, with flashes of insight and plenty of laughs. A good choice for the Cards, whose next is Enchanted April – but you'll have to wait till June for that ...

THE GHOST TRAIN

THE GHOST TRAIN

Writtle Cards

28.10.2014

Arnold Ridley's mystery thriller has played in village halls throughout the land; ninety years on, audiences still gasp at the “noises off” that so impressed the Guardian in 1925.

Michelle Moody's production plays out in a suitably drab waiting room, a peeling railway poster advertises the delights of Cornwall. Enter the stranded passengers, the women more convincingly costumed than the men, all hatted except for the silly ass [Arthur Askey in the film...] whose missing headgear has made them miss their connection.

Enjoyable performances on offer from Nick Caton, irritating the others with his endless stories and flippant attitude, but saving the day in the end, and from Liz Curley as Miss Bourne, brilliantly breaking the pledge with borrowed brandy. Newcomer Jerry Thomas gives a masterclass in Coarse Acting as the surly Saul Hodgkin, stationmaster of Fal Vale. Grumpy Boot Banes and Clare Williams are the ill-suited Winthrops, Chris Rogerson and Shelley Goodwin the very young honeymooners, Sharon Goodwin the mysterious, troubled Miss Price.

The auditorium is wonderfully decorated with all kinds of railway ephemera, including station signs for Fal Vale and Writtle Cards; the bar offers Truro Tipple, a cider and rum concoction. But the play itself pootles along the branch line – to get up a head of steam would need a more confident command of Ridley's text, spookier gaslight with sinister shadows, and better special effects: the lights, the thunderous noise, the smoke, the shattered glass …

RING ROUND THE MOON

RING ROUND THE MOON

Writtle Cards in the Village Hall

27.06.14

“The season is immaterial.” A Wilde guess at the literary influence on Fry's English version of this French farce from the 50s. Oscar's hand in the crumbling butler [a splendid Boot Baines] and the caustic Aunt [Margaret Rutherford, once, now Liz Curley in her antique bath-chair – shades of Aunt Sedilia, Lady Dundown - “I can walk, it's just I'm so rich I don't need to...”

Anouilh's “charade with music” is given a rich revival by Writtle Cards. Daniel Curley's production, set in the Roaring Twenties, boasts gorgeous frock and a catchy score [pace Poulenc]: ragtime, tango and a classy Anything Goes finale.

Some stylish performances, too, not least Curly himself as Messerschmann, the tycoon who sees the light and shreds his fortune. An elegant Diana from Michele Moody, a charming young butterfly [Isabelle, Brigitte Bardot's role] from Laura Bradley, with Angie Gee as her gushing mother. Twin brothers Hugo and Frederic are played with relish by Neil Smith – a challenging role, assumed with assured versatility. Not everyone is as secure with their words, but there is a standout character turn from Paulette Harris as Capulet the companion – a constantly delightful, physically resourceful performance.

Fireworks, a catfight, sophisticated wit and broad comedy – a recipe for a fine evening of boulevard theatre.

and for Sardines

Not scene-stealing, exactly, but some splendidly eye-catching work from the supporting actors in this lovely revival of Jean Anouilh's social comedy.

In Daniel Curley's stylish production, we begin and end with the imposing presence of Joshua, the crumbling butler, splendidly embodied by Boot Baines, who has the manservant's fruity tones to a tee. He's taken a tape measure to the chairs in the orangerie, proprieties must be observed, but his efforts are thwarted by the invasion of jazz music and bright young things, the château’s weekend guests.

Music and movement play a key role in this piece: the ending, before Baines is left alone with his thoughts and his chairs, is a wonderful full-cast production number, a karaoke Anything Goes. Another musical highlight was the piano duet, mime and memories, from those other eye-catching characters, Paulette Harris's faded companion and Angie Gee's pushy, garrulous mother. I was only sorry that there was no outing for that catchy little number from 1931, performed by Al Bowlly amongst others, There's A Ring Around The Moon …

As a director, one cannot guarantee that everyone in the cast will be able to convince as a French socialite between the wars. What you can do, and Curley does triumphantly well here, is overlay the action with stylish touches, inspired ideas. The dancing servants, the Jealousy tango, the frozen groups of onlookers.

The costumes, too [Jan Irving] are superb, worth the seven quid ticket price alone. Isabelle, the innocent lower-middle-class dancer [protégée of Geoff Hadley's hapless lepidopterist] who's at the heart of the intrigue, played with an easy charm and palpable presence by Laura Bradley, is dressed on her first entrance in plain dove grey, with a simple rope of pearls: a stunning effect, but easily topped by the designer gown she's given to wear for her part in the web of deception …

The eligible identical twins are confidently done by Neil Smith, switching from devilish rake to lost dog with a change of boutonnière and wire-rimmed specs. He manages to give us two distinct characterizations, though I suspect more can be achieved with sleight of hand, lighting and body doubles. Good work too from Michele Moody as his fiancée, Liz Curley as the formidable aunt, bathchair-bound until the song-and-dance finale, and Louise Burtenshaw as Lady India, secretly in love with Patrice [Alex Houlton]. And of course Mr Curley himself, making the most of the melancholy millionaire who has a wonderful scene turning his back on Mammon and heading off to Krakow.

Despite a numbingly long first half – originally a three-acter, this – Writtle, and producer Nick Caton, are to be congratulated on a deliciously entertaining piece of period froth.

WELSH HAIR-BITS

WELSH 

HAIR-BITS

Writtle Cards at the Village Hall

14.03.2014

Two snippets from Wales's premier playwright, Frank Vickery, both featuring family life and false locks, both directed by Liz Curley.

The earlier piece, written in the 80s, when you could still get a shampoo and set for £8, takes place in a pigeon-fancier's front room, full of clutter and toot [set by Pete Goodwin].

Doreen [a convincing Jodee Goodwin] wants her folks out of the way for when her darling Lollipop [Chris Rogerson] calls for an evening of passion with his Dumpling, but the best-laid bath-night plans … Dai Pigeon was played by Nick Caton, his missus, twice taken by surprise, was amusingly done by Sharon Goodwin.

The later, shorter and much funnier “Split Ends” featured another Welsh matriarch, excellently portrayed, with killer comic timing, by Paulette Harris, with that seasoned farceur Daniel Curley strong in support as her flatulent, follically-challenged Cyril. Love's young dream this time played by Toby Harris and Louise Burtenshaw. It was clear from the opening tableau – ironing stage left, legs akimbo stage right, both sporting horrendous hairpieces – that we were in for a farcical ride. The audience loved it all, dead cats, cross-dressing, pickled onions, black-face and Ninja Turtle napkins.

The Welsh accents were assumed with varying success, but, as usual at CARDS productions, there was an impressive auditorium display [Clare Williams] and Welsh Cakes to scoff in the interval ...

THE FLINT STREET NATIVITY

THE FLINT STREET NATIVITY

Writtle Cards at the Village Hall

28.11.13

We've all been there. Watching the little angels [and the little devils] as innkeeper, shepherds, kings and the Holy Family.

So Tim Firth's cutting comedy is onto a winner straightaway, as the plentiful laughs proved on opening night.

It's not a perfect stage play [it began life on television], and the adult epilogue struggled to relight the fire, but some fine comedy performances got under the skin of the reception-class thespians, with their rivalries, insecurities and chaotic home lives. Often sung to those familiar carol tunes, replacing the words they didn't quite manage to learn.

Impossible to credit every child [all played, Five-Go-Mad style, by grown-ups], but Daniel Curley stood out as the malevolent innkeeper, Jean Speller as the lisping Andrea, Frankincense her shibboleth, Laura Bennett as bossy Virgin 1, with five stars on the “Who's Been Good?” chart, Jodee Goodwin as her catty rival, playing Gabriel – the Annunciation was superbly done – Liz Curley as a down-to-earth shepherd with brilliant comedy timing. Not to mention Dirty Pedro, and the special needs donkey, hilariously done by Chris Rogerson.

The set, with its cereal packets and its giant chair to suggest the scale, was convincing, as were the varied costumes. Class teacher Mrs Horrocks never appears, but her tambourine spoke volumes …

The Flint Street Nativity was produced for Writtle Cards by Clare Williams, and directed by Sharon Goodwin.

CALENDAR GIRLS

CALENDAR GIRLS

Writtle Cards at the Village Hall

19.06.13

Tim Firth's play of 2008 – and the calendar of 2000 – have returned to their charitable, community roots, with over 500 amateur groups fighting for a chance to perform it, raising money for Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research and aiming for the Guinness Book of Records.

It's an inspiring story, shot through with sentimentality and Yorkshire humour. Laura Bennett's sell-out production at Writtle has a top-notch cast, not only the six poseuses, but the beautician, WI officials and guests, plus of course the men – Neil Smith hilarious as the shy snapper, Daniel Curley very moving as the husband whose death sets the whole scheme in motion.

Leafing through the months, we see some of the best, and the bravest, actresses of a certain age for miles around. Paulette Harris outstanding as the forthright florist, Michele Moody as the boozy refugee from the golf club, Barbara Llewellyn as the Brodiesque retired teacher, Sharon Goodwin, the determined widow, Beth Crozier as the musical single mum and Liz Curley as the reluctant Ruth. Not forgetting Jean Speller as the gloriously snobbish branch chairman.

They're a cheeky bunch, naughtily subverting the jam and Jerusalem image with their giggly banter. And Firth's script provides one-liners and set-pieces for everyone.

This thoroughly enjoyable staging is spare and simple – the Dales on a sliding screen – with effectively stylised solutions to the death of John, the showers of fan mail, the sunflowers.

Typically for Writtle, there are sunflowers everywhere, a fund-raising stall for that original Calendar Girls charity, Victoria Sponge [not M&S] and Knapely Knee-trembler in the interval, the real W.I. in attendance. The all-important photo-shoot props include preserves from, where else, Wilkin's.

And yes, dear reader, I bought the calendar, [pictures by ParryHide Photography] which I'm pleased to see features many other company members to make up the eighteen months ...

ON GOLDEN POND

ON GOLDEN POND

Writtle Cards at the Village Hall

16.02.13

Norman Thayer Jr, retired English Professor, is in Maine for the forty-eighth summer. He brings with him the long-suffering Mrs Norman Thayer Jr, his failing memory and his weak heart.

They rub along, welcome visitors, and watch the loons on Golden Pond.

Ernest Thompson's classic play was a good choice for Valentine's week, and for Writtle Cards, who have their very own iconic pond just outside their door.

Boot Banes made a superb Norman – grumpy, sardonic, and moving, too, as when he recalls losing his way in the woods. Clare Williams, as Ethel, also had her moving moments, clutching her childhood doll, and comforting her cantankerous old man as he collapses from over-exertion.

Good support from those passing through – Chris Rogerson as the cheery, chuckling postman, Jodee Goodwin as the daughter who finally wins her father's love, Chris Ivermee as her new man, The Dentist, and a nice cameo from Toby Harris as his young son, who is quick to learn from The Old Man of the Sea, and teaches him a thing or two along the way.

The picture-book setting made good use of limited space, though perhaps the board games and the fishing tackle, the mantlepiece and the hatrack, could have been two-dimensional paintings too, and Nick Caton's painstaking production used appropriate music tracks – Jim Croce's Time in a Bottle, for instance. Even the refreshments fitted the theme – heart-shaped biscuits and Loon Love Liquor …

Ethel's tollhouse cookie recipe

140g whole-wheat flour

½ tsp baking soda

½ tsp salt

120g unsalted butter, softened

200g brown sugar

1 egg, lightly beaten

1½ tsp vanilla extract

70g rolled oats

75g chocolate chips

70g chopped nuts
Sift together the flour, baking soda and salt into a large bowl. Combine the butter and brown sugar in a separate bowl and cream together until pale and fluffy. Add the egg, beating thoroughly to combine then stir in the vanilla extract. Add the flour mix to the butter and egg mix and blend thoroughly to combine. Now stir in the rolled oats, chocolate chips and nuts. Grease your baking trays and drop the batter by the heaped teaspoon onto these, allowing enough space between them for the cookies to spread as they bake. Transfer to an oven pre-heated to 170°C and bake for about 12 minutes, or until cooked through and golden brown. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely and serve or store in an air-tight tin.

A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM

A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM

Phoenix Theatre Company and Writtle CARDS

20.06.12

Shakespeare would have known and loved local amateur dramatics.

Nowadays, village productions of his plays are rare, thanks to waning enthusiasm and higher audience expectations.

So good to welcome this joint effort, directed by Michael Lewis.

Plenty to enjoy, in a version lasting only just over two hours including the interval, with a choice of customized punches. And I don't mean just the hiccups and the wardrobe malfunction when a cummerbund went the way of Thisbe's mantle, to the audible delight of two ladies in row F.

The crew of patches, led by Syd Smith's Quince and Geoff Hadley's Bully Bottom – nicely dressed as tradesmen – came into their own in the excruciating rehearsal and the chaotic "show" – Chris Wright's nervous Flute a particular delight.

Neil Smith and Kenton Church played the testy rivals, their lovers were Leila Francis, who also assisted the director, and Laura Bennett, whose characterization – jealous, frustrated, tearful – was excellent. I liked the way their "weeds of Athens" got more and more distressed during that eventful night in the woods. Other stand-outs in a large cast were Daniel Curley's irate Egeus and Jean Speller's beautifully spoken Titania.

This ambitious undertaking, supported by the RSC's Open Stages scheme, boasted an atmospheric forest, designed by Les Leeds, and some very young apprentices – playing the fairies, mothered by Sarah Wilson's Merry Wanderer, but also lanthorn, dog and Philostrate – shared by cleft-apple twins. The Bard would surely have approved.

THE GLASS MENAGERIE

THE GLASS MENAGERIE

Writtle Cards

at Writtle Village Hall

03.02.12

For their hundredth production, Writtle chose Tennessee Williams' moody memory play, first staged in 1944.

A tough call, recreating the steamy world of St Louis just a stone's throw from Writtle's frozen duckpond, but Writtle Cards' production [directed by Laura Bennett and produced by Nick Caton] worked hard to establish atmosphere, with Tom's opening monologue, evocatively delivered by Caton, with the black stage [which really needed a more ambitious lighting plot] and with the soundtrack: the worn-out phonograph records on Laura's Victrola, The Swan and other animals, and cheap music from the Paradise Dance Hall across the street.

Two other devices added much to our appreciation of the piece: the "magic mirror" on the wall [though it should really have been bigger] and the key words ['legends'], revealed Brecht-style on costumes and furnishings. Not everything worked, but the production was full of real originality and inspiration.

Paulette Harris was a very convincing Amanda, the faded Southern Belle who is over-fond of her shy, disabled daughter [Megan Hill, in a touchingly simple performance]. Harris caught the martyred expression, the resignation, the tristesse, to perfection. She had the accent nailed too. Only occasional insecurity with the words prevented this from being a truly outstanding interpretation.

Ben Fraser's "scrubbed and polished" Gentleman Caller was a nice foil for Caton's tragic Tom, trapped in the stifling apartment and the dead-end warehouse, until he finally walks out, with "and so goodbye" on his valise.

ABSURD PERSON SINGULAR

ABSURD PERSON SINGULAR

Writtle Cards

18.11.11

More tinsel in the auditorium, more fractured families with Yuletide issues.

This is the Ayckbourn set on Christmas Eves past, present and future in three different kitchens. And what splendid kitchens they were [Pete Goodwin] – just like something from a 70's Hygena catalogue.

Michele Moody's laugh-a-minute production, emphasising the farce rather than the darker side, had a strong comedic cast. In the orange kitchen, Neil Smith, playing an annoying, boring chap who's desperate to impress as the play starts, but calling the party-game shots by the final curtain – a consistently funny performance, well matched by Sharon Goodwin as his mousy wife, getting worked-up in company, happiest in pinny and Marigolds. I admired the attention to detail in this crucial first act – the party noise off-stage-left, the rain off-stage-right. Different doorbell, different styling for the kitchen where young Eva [Shelley Goodwin] sits silently, surrounded by crumpled suicide notes. A weak, unstable flower-child, by Act Three she's got it together, the power behind her ineffectual, feckless architect partner [Chris Ivermee].

Sorry not to meet the life-and-soul scouting, school-teaching Potters, or glimpse their kitchen. The last couple, pine furniture and a paraffin heater, were the wonderful Brewster-Wrights, ageing banker Ronald [Daniel Curley, a crusty DofE sound-alike] and his second wife Marion [Liz Curley]. His electric shock and her maudlin drunk were two memorable highlights of a very enjoyable escapist evening.

COMIC POTENTIAL

Writtle Cards at the Village Hall

03.03.09

Well, I would never have guessed it was by Ayckbourn. Miles outside his comfort zone, it's a dark philosophical , romantic comedy which attracted some great reviews a decade ago in the West End and on Broadway.

We're asked to imagine a future when robots [aka actoids] churn out daytime soaps. An idealistic young writer [Ben Fraser], nephew of the studio's owner, is smitten by one such drone [Elaine Reynolds, consistently charming in a huge role], teaches her the double-take and the custard pie, and grooms her for stardom.

The whole thing needs a deal of style to overcome gaps in logic; the second act, despite the frequent scene changes, was more enjoyably farcical.

The most believable character here was the over-the-hill movie director, nicely played by Neil Smith. He was too young for the part, but his rambling reminiscence of his glory days was beautifully done. I liked the two “shrews” who seemed to be the only crew [Sharon Goodwin and Clare Williams], and there were accomplished cameos from Jean Speller as an older actoid and a trollope, and from the talented, always watchable Daniel Curley as waiter, desk clerk and the mute Uncle, with an elegant Michele Moody as his mouthpiece. Andy Millward was an amusing faulty actoid, Shelley Goodwin did what she could with an injured actoid and the boutique assistant, and Liz Curley got the custard pie as man-hungry executive Carla Pepperbloom.

More care could have been taken with the music and the programme, but I liked the pin-ups around the auditorium: Buster Keaton, C3PO, Wall-E …

Overlong, not as confident or snappy as it needed to be, but still an interesting revival of a rare Ayckbourn. It was directed by Sarah Wilson, and produced by Nick Caton.

NOEL COWARD DOUBLE BILL

Writtle Cards

20.05.10

An entertaining couple of Cowards from Writtle Cards.

The more substantial piece – Still Life – was directed by Laura Bennett. Better known in its celluloid version – Brief Encounter – it has a clever dramatic structure. Nick Caton and Michele Moody caught the style of their two characters very well, helped by careful costuming. Their hesitant relationship was nicely contrasted with the free-and-easy station staff: Daniel Curley's saucy Stanley, Boot Banes's fruity ticket inspector and Sharon Goodwin's matronly Myrtle. I liked the set, with its girders and its vintage advertisements, and the way the passage of time was suggested by fresh flowers on the tables of the Station Buffet.

Less secure in its social setting perhaps, but constantly entertaining nonetheless, was Hazel Reilly's Fumed Oak. It starred Boot Banes, relishing the role that Coward wrote for himself: Henry Gow, the Clapham worm that turns and walks out on the three generations of women who have made his life a misery – Doris, his missus [Elaine Reynolds], his pigtailed daughter [Claire Williams] and his refined mother-in-law [Jean Speller].

IN FOR THE KILL

Writtle Cards

20.02.09

Wagers were laid in the interval. Who “fixed the brake pipes” ["cut", not "mended"] and caused a fatal accident ? We knew it couldn't be the mysterious, menacing visitor, played by Nick Caton in an effectively sustained performance. Perhaps not the only way to play this enigmatic stalker [he's described as “very friendly”], but powerfully done, with commendable stillness and control.

Could it be Paula, confused by the multiple motives and endless mind games [Sarah Wilson] ? Instead of showing Frank the satisfyingly solid door, she mixes him a drink, encourages him to smoke, and only after he's downed three generous vodkas does she make up her mind to call the police. Or hubby James [Lee Barnes, with some scary shouting], pianist daughter Susan [Laura Bennett] ?

The victim, Paula's not-so-secret lover, was Neil Smith, who had two reactions, awkward and rabbit-in-the-headlights.

The capacity house for this Derek Benfield thriller from the early 80s, directed by Michele Moody, was asked to believe that these characters, talking too much and drinking too much, inhabited the 21^st century. But this was an age before GCSEs and, more crucially, before mobile phones. The final twist was clever, but a long time coming. The tension might have built better with a tab curtain, and a tighter grasp of the words.