A Tomb With A View

I was delighted to be invited to attend St Nicolas Players’ production of ‘A Tomb with a View’.

With the visit being my first, I was excited to see what the renowned society, which I had heard much about from Nigel Hancocks (Emeritus NODA East Midlands Regional Counsellor) and Jules Jones (NODA East Midlands Regional Councillor), had produced.

Before I move on to my review of the show, I would like to briefly mention what a brilliant venue the South Holland Centre is. The post-show tour allowed me to see how the venue is a fully functioning theatre in the heart of Spalding. What an amazing resource for the community to utilise! As such, it caused me great dismay to hear that the local authority is reviewing how best to use the space. For what it is ‘A Tomb with a View’ was written by Norman Robbins and is a comedic take on the traditional ‘who did it’ murder mysteries.

Set in the Tomb Mansion, taking place in a single room – thus allowing for a stationary box set to be used by a company – the plot unfolds around the reading of the Will of the late Septimus Tomb. Against this backdrop, the audience is introduced to a mènagerie of characters, each a caricature of their role. It is often the case that the administration of an estate will bring out the worst in the family, friends, and acquaintances of the deceased: the plot of ‘A Tomb with a View’ characterisation and comedy.

Creatives
Glen Barker did an outstanding job in his direction of the cast of ‘A Tomb with a View’. There were several positive qualities to Glen’s direction style. First, his blocking was slick and textured, adding to the overall visual presentation of the show. Second, his drilling of the cast in line delivery paid off greatly, especially given that the play is very wordy; Finally, the characterisation he helped each cast member to develop was fantastic.

From my conversations with Glen, I can appreciate the vast amount of hard work that went into the direction, production, and staging of the show. To achieve such a brilliant run in just six-weeks of rehearsals is outstanding! I applaud Glen and the team.

Cast
Every cast member did a excellent job and was perfectly suited to their roles, offering the audience well-defined characters, brilliant comedic timing, and side-splitting physical comedy.  normally, I can make special notes to those that I thought added that little bit extra or particularly caught my eye. However, this is a rare occasion where the cast was well balanced with every member bringing their own unique self and talent to the part. Nick Fletcher (Hamilton Penworthy) did a brilliant job as the stuffy family solicitor and managed his character’s darker sides and ultimate demise splendidly. The Tomb family were portrayed by some talented actors, each bringing an eccentric Tomb family member to life with great skill. Adam Patman, as Lucien Tomb, was outstanding and played his part with great comedic timing and physical comedic impact. Mandie Collier, as Dora Tomb, added a great gothic presence to the stage; her episodes of melancholy and sinister glee captured brilliantly the insanity of Dora. Joanna Hobbs, as Emily Tomb, delivered a slick and stony interpretation of this hardened Tomb sister. Edwards Harris, as Marcus Tomb, did a brilliant job in characterising Julius Caesar (the alter ego of Marcus Tomb) with great stage presence. Finally, Emma Dobbs managed the role of Monica Tomb with ease, giving the audience all the sultry sass required by the part.

Adam, Mandie, Joanna, Edward, and Emma must be congratulated on collectively bringing to life one of the most eccentric stage families I have ever seen. Their work  was brilliant and made the audience laugh a plenty. Very well done indeed!  The pairing of Arline Evenden (as Freda Mountjoy) and Joe Dickinson (as Peregrine Potter) were brilliant. Both did an excellent job. specifically, I applaud Arline for stepping into the role with such short notice; and I salute Joe for being so committed to the part that he was willing to be soaked to the bone after his car crashed into the Tomb family lake.

Beverly Moore offered great characterisation to her part as Agatha Hammond, and I congratulate her on her stage presence and vocal work.  Jules Jones did a brilliant job as Anne Franklin offering the audience a sickly-sweet portrayal of the nurse. She gave us plenty of bloodcurdling screams, and an extremely well-handled plot pivot and character arc as Anne becomes the true villain of the plot.  I deeply congratulate all cast members on their brilliant work on stage. Together the cast produced an extremely funny, slick, professional interpretation of ‘A Tomb with a View’.

Production

The set was of a very high standard, with great attention to detail and realism; the high standard of the staging added greatly to the production and demonstrated the society’s professional standards. Properties were of an equally high standard, and I greatly appreciated the attention to detail paid. I congratulate Arline Evenden, Richard Evenden, Janet Staples, and Thomas James on their work.  The costumes were well sourced and reflective of the play and overall production; I thank Janet Staples for her commitment to the wardrobe for the cast.  The lighting design was simple but realistic and effective for the production. The sound was of a good standard throughout and any effects were managed with professionalism. All transitions were achieved with ease. Credit for the high standard
of the work in this area lies with Arline Evenden, Emma Swords, and Sophie Gale.

Closing remarks
My warmest of congratulations for an extremely good production of ‘A Tomb with a View’, which really was brilliant! It was an exceptionally funny production of a high standard, with professional qualities present. I thank St Nicolas Players, in particular Nigel Hancocks and Glen Barker, for the very warm hospitality shown to me upon my visit.

I look forward to seeing the society’s work again in the future.

Luke Campbell
Regional Representative, NODA East Midlands District 7

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