A Bunch of Amateurs

A Bunch of Amateurs was the ideal choice of play for this welcoming and enthusiastic group of players, set in a village hall (albeit not dilapidated as its fictional counterpart!), and echoing the premise of a play put on by amateurs in name, but professional in attitude and eagerness to succeed.

The cast worked well as an ensemble, competently directed by Rachel Betts, to balance and counterbalance the quirky traits of some of the protagonists. Netti Lomas successfully held this band of oddball characters together, as Dorothy, managing to show her authority and underlying vulnerability simultaneously.

Jude Savill was the perfect antithesis to Dorothy, as the wacky Mary, with her crazy clothing and hilarious glasses routines. Yet, as with Dorothy, she too managed to use this outward persona to protect her more sensitive inner self.

Another nuanced character was John Oglesby, who was able to play the pompous and rather stiff lawyer Nigel, while still getting some sympathy from the audience as time and again he gently tried to show his unrequited love for Dorothy. Martin Gouldstone had a real challenge as Jefferson, a spoilt, self-centred caricature of a movie star who was deliberately hard to watch in the way that he captured the essence of this Trump-like egotist. Martin never broke character, and gradually his Jefferson became more bearable as his conversion took hold. He was a good opposite number to Nigel. A lovely contrast to this brash American was the delightful Denis, excellently portrayed by Dan Harwood. His hangdog expressions and quiet, unassuming nature were offset by his occasional crazy suggestions, and it was a joy to watch Dan as he changed from West Country bumpkin into a splendid Shakespearean actor. Caroline Mackrill and Megan Elliston brought some well-executed sanity to this bonkers bunch as Lauren and Jessica respectively.

The set was very well-designed.The flat on wheels at the side of the stage was a  clever and effective way of minimising the scene changes between the village hall and Mary’s B&B, so that the play did not suffer with a dip in energy.The backdrop for the second half when the Lear play was happening was really effective.There were some parts where the characters were not sufficiently lit, which detracted a little from the action, but overall the space was cleverly used.

The costumes were excellent, although it wasn’t clear if the characters performing Lear were meant to still have their modern trousers and trainers/shoes showing under the splendid Shakespearean costumes or whether it was a directorial choice possibly due to time constraints between scenes. The same is true when Jefferson got spectacularly soaked, and was still wet the next day. Again, it was a challenge with the way he stayed on stage to have been able to get round this, but other than that it was a funny and moving scene with some commendable acting.

There were some lovely surprises to keep the audience wanting more, such as the mobility scooter, the paper with Jefferson’s lines on covering the whole of Denis’ back, and Caroline emerging from the reluctant sponsor to make a very convincing physiotherapist.

Overall, the cast certainly seemed to be enjoying their roles, and there was a lot of detail and thought that went into this production, so well done to cast and crew and many thanks for inviting me.

                                      © NODA CIO. All rights reserved

© NODA CIO. All rights reserved.