ACT in Action Issue 17

The story concerns four out-of-condition, middle-aged businessmen who embark on an outdoor team building adventure in the Lake District. The exercise is designed to help build teamwork through working together in possibly adverse conditions which their prowess, initiatives, personal abilities and areas of responsibility will be honed and improved to the benefit and advantage of their business acumen and performance. What actually happens is they become marooned on an island in Derwentwater where they become cut off from the world, menaced by wild life, isolated by fog and thrown very much back on their own ideas, suggestions, hitherto unknown bad tempers, unflattering views of their colleagues abilities and a fountain of events which give untold opportunities for hilarity and humour for an appreciative audience. The setting was extremely atmospheric and the product of some extremely hard work by the backstage staff. Some heavy lifting had gone on because the considerable height of the island (probably sack loads of top soil or whatever) was meticulously covered by greenery. Whoever inhabited the summit (and all did from time to time) was monarch of all he surveyed and created all manner of different angles and sight lines and projections for the actors who had to keep changing volume and techniques on their geographical position on the island. There were masses of trees SR and SL and those SL contained a look- out towards the top of them, hidden, but visible to the audience; which could be and was inhabited from time to time by an actor who was either bird-watching or looking for a rescue boat, because even though they were ”ship-wrecked” they were in connection by phone, so were expecting to be rescued. Derwentwater was totally invisible but such was the true to life feel of this incredible set, plus the actor’s uncanny realism in their situation, I had no difficulty whatsoever in believing I had spent a couple of hours with some unfortunate blokes who were lost on an island in the Lake District, the lighting effects being so good as to only reinforce my belief. To sum everything up, this was an excellent attempt of the production of this difficult play and I felt you got the balance between pathos and humour, and also between personal emotions and togetherness in an unsympathetic situation, near spot on. You were helped by your combined spirit of adventure, fortified by your senses of humour, which were there some of the time when you had to deal with problems which had a habit of arising quite naturally for much of time. I thought the four of you made maximum use of your bit of the Lake District and that was extremely gratifying because not to have used every inch would have been heretical to each other and to the creation of something special. Well done! Mike Jones played Neville and he seemed to be, as the play developed, the one character who seemed to have retained some sense of normality in this ill-fated expedition and he brought this off really well. The interaction between the other three actors is underpinned by Neville who has to walk a fine line of making the others see sense, justify his decisions, keep their spirits up and see sense whilst at the same-time he really wants it to be a success and Mike did this splendidly. After all it is his island – Tim Firth said it was. A fine performance which was a joy to watch. Steve Harrison was Angus and he played the part with a quite solemn and pleasing correctness, most of the time and captured exactly the attitude he was meant to have on the team. This he accomplished without resorting to exaggerated or stylised mannerisms but, as a result of a carefully considered characterisation which worked to excellent effect. I found the interpretation just right for the balance and interest necessary in such a team. Of course, there was some manic behaviour here and there, as in his preference for rugby rather than French cricket; Gordon’s sausage and his haversack attack, but this was very much in the spirit of the story. A most enjoyable relevant performance. Gordon was played byAndy Chase who gave us a quite charismatic portrayal, wholly sustained throughout. His disposition, though entirely happy and carefree, verged on the adventurous and the audience was soon under his spell. He had prepared well for the expedition – food, things which might be needed etc and his reaction to the invasion of his haversack was very impressive. He inhabited the role completely and successfully. Gary Kennedy played Roy and gave a performance which was a

finely observed interpretation in which there was a kind of religious fervour in the portrayal, so that we actually believed in him. We believed in them all, of course, because one of the outstanding feelings they illustrated in the story was the truth and realism of the situation they found themselves in. Gary’s timing was well controlled, completely serious, with believable facial expression which gave the impression that he really was in Derwentwater not on a stage feeling like he did. He was rational, pleasant, eager to be helpful as one of a team but, as the ordeal intensified, he took off for the look-out, and there was concern about his well being, leading to a thrilling emotional scene from the tree-tops This was an impressive performance throughout and the variety of emotions, the focus, concentration and facial expressions were always honest, emotionally charged and utterly believable. Well done. Congratulations to Simon and everyone involved on and off stage in any way. This was an impressive production, of which the Society should be proud. It is a rare moment in theatre when all elements combine so well. Tonight they did just that and deserved a full house which you didn’t get ,I believe; all week. Many thanks for your welcome and hospitality. ALADDIN written by Ben Crocker To enter a foyer of any theatre and hear the auditorium buzzing with excitement, immediately puts a smile on one’s face. It brings home the fact that Pantomime season is here and that the public want to be entertained, people of all ages want to smile and laugh and enjoy themselves. I am sure that the noise from the packed auditorium, filled with uniformed organisations from Rainbows, Brownies and Cub Scouts, could be heard behind the curtain and made all those about to go on stage wonder what the next couple of hours would bring. As we all know, the expectation for pantomime is that a story is told and the audience are invited to not just sit and listen but engage and interact with the actors, to boo the baddies and cheer on the goodies. This is a skill that has to be learnt by those controlling the action from on stage and can be daunting for seasoned actors who have practiced their craft for years. The youth actors rose to this challenge admirably and did all that was expected of them with assured confidence. They had a belief in their production, obviously brought about through their rehearsals with their director Barbara Harris and confidently told the story of Aladdin. The beauty of any pantomime is that there is an added thrill when things go awry but this only adds to the excitement and enjoyment for an audience. The thrill for a reviewer, such as I, is how these are dealt with by the actors themselves. My admiration for these young actors during the performance I watched grew. There were a few gremlins directed by Barbara Harris Players Youth Theatre

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