An Evening of One Act Plays

The Longton Players presented 'An Evening of One Act Plays' at St Andrew’s Community Hall, offering the audience three shows for the price of one. Thank you to the society for inviting me along to what proved to be an enjoyable evening. It was lovely to see a packed auditorium and such a warm, supportive atmosphere from the moment I arrived. The Chair’s welcome in the programme rightly celebrated the strength of the society, and it was impressive that all three plays had been written by members of The Longton Players. This is a testament to a flourishing society, with creative talent not only on stage but also behind the scenes.

The evening comprised of three contrasting pieces: Over My Dead Body by Pat Baker, Five Minutes to Curtain Call by Robert J Daniels, and Séance and Sensibility, also by Robert J Daniels. This gave the audience excellent variety and allowed a broad range of performers to be showcased. It was especially pleasing to see performers of different ages on stage, which gave the evening a strong community feel and showed the depth of talent within the group. Overall, the production felt confident and well-rehearsed. The pacing across the evening was good, and the stories developed naturally. The audience were clearly engaged throughout, particularly enjoying the local references and knowing jokes, which were nicely judged and warmly received.

The first play, Over My Dead Body, was written and directed by Pat Baker and introduced us to Lord and Lady Grabbit, their daughter Daphne, and a household full of secrets, deceit and murder. Lord Grabbit is murdered, and the play becomes a classic “whodunnit”, very much in the style of an Agatha Christie mystery. Pat Baker’s writing gave the cast plenty to play with, and the direction kept the story moving. There was a good deal of satire within the piece, along with some physical theatre elements, and the cast handled these nicely. These moments added extra energy and humour to the play without taking away from the mystery. Mike Stockley as Lord Grabbit created a suitably grand and self-important character. He gave Lord Grabbit the air of someone used to being obeyed, which worked well within the world of the play. His performance helped establish the tone of the piece from the beginning, and his eventual murder provided the central mystery around which the rest of the action unfolded. Liz Hobin as Lady Grabbit was, for me, one of the standout performers of the evening. She was wonderfully natural on stage and had an ease and confidence that made her performance very believable. Her reactions were well timed, and she brought a lovely sense of control and comic subtlety to the role. Christina Rose as Daphne gave a very enjoyable performance as the daughter within this rather questionable household. She had most of the physical comedy in the piece, and she carried this well. Her movement and reactions added a lot of humour, while still fitting neatly within the style of the play. She worked well with the family dynamic and helped maintain both the tension and comedy of the story. Al-Yasa Khan as Roger fitted well into the ensemble and contributed effectively to the unfolding intrigue. His character helped move the plot along, and he worked well with the other performers. Carl White as Kurt the butler brought a good presence to the stage. A butler role in this style of play always offers opportunities for understated humour and suspicion, and Carl made the most of the character’s position within the household. Joan Miller as Dotty the cook was another standout performance. She played the role with understated humour and a very natural stage presence. Dotty could easily have become too broad, but Joan kept the character believable while still finding the comedy, and her contribution added to the charm of the play. James Miley as Inspector Foot of the Yard brought energy and authority to the investigation. He gave the piece a clear shift in tone once the inspector arrived and helped bring the mystery element together. The cast worked very well as an ensemble and had good chemistry. The relationships were clear, and the dialogue was delivered with confidence. This was a very enjoyable opening play and set the evening off strongly.

The second play, Five Minutes to Curtain Call, was written by Robert J Daniels and directed by Briony Rimmer. This was a chaotic and heartfelt love letter to amateur dramatics, and it was easy to see why the audience responded so warmly to it. The premise of a cast trying to survive the final few minutes before opening night gave plenty of opportunity for comedy, panic and theatrical in-jokes. James Miley as The Director gave a strong performance, capturing the stress and desperation of someone trying to keep everything together while the production appeared to be falling apart. His timing was good, and he helped anchor the chaos around him. Marcus Lord as The Lead brought confidence and leading man flair to the role. He captured the slightly heightened energy of an actor under pressure and worked well within the backstage comedy style. Jenny Ashby as The Diva clearly enjoyed the role and gave the audience a recognisable theatrical personality. She brought humour and presence to the part, with just the right level of dramatic self-importance. Sylvia Williams as The Veteran gave a lovely, calming performance. She brought experience and assurance to the role, and her character provided a nice contrast to the nerves and panic of the others. Charlie Jones as The Understudy brought good energy and commitment. The role allowed for some enjoyable moments of uncertainty and ambition, and Charlie handled these well. Jon Dunbar as The Newcomer gave a very believable performance, capturing the nervousness and confusion of someone still finding their place in the theatrical world. His reactions were well observed and added to the comedy. Katie Wilkinson as Tech was effective and believable. The technical side of amateur theatre is often where much of the real panic happens, and Katie’s performance added an enjoyable layer to the backstage atmosphere. Robert J Daniels as the Stage Manager’s voice made a strong vocal contribution. Even without being physically seen, the voice of the Stage Manager added to the sense of pressure and helped drive the action towards curtain up. Briony Rimmer’s direction was well paced without allowing the chaos to become unclear. The play had a lot of affection for amateur theatre, and this affection came through. It was funny, recognisable and very well received by the audience.

The final play, Séance and Sensibility, was written and directed by Robert J Daniels. This took us into the world of paranormal podcasting, scepticism, eccentric mediumship and supernatural interruption. It was a fun and playful comedy, and it made good use of the community hall setting. Nicola Brailsford as Dani gave a confident and engaging performance as one of the enthusiastic paranormal podcasters. She helped establish the tone of the piece and brought good energy to the role. Chris Beaumont as Gary worked well alongside Dani, creating a believable podcasting partnership. His delivery had a nice natural quality, helping the audience settle into the unusual situation. Mia Hickson as Tina gave a good performance as the techie, bringing a grounded presence to the supernatural chaos around her. She fitted well into the rhythm of the piece. Wendy Deighton as Madame Lucinda clearly embraced the eccentricity of the role. She brought colour and humour to the character and gave the audience plenty to enjoy. Chris Hill as Ron provided a good contrast as the sceptic. His doubt and resistance worked well against the more enthusiastic believers, and this helped build the comedy of the piece. Although we did not see Reginald Featherstone, Miss Agnes Thimble or Jane on stage, the voices of Mike Stickley, Val Summer and Charlie Jones helped establish the presence of the “other side”. However, for me, the vocal treatment itself was not quite as effective as the rest of the sound design. The voices sounded a little too natural too quickly, and because such a strong effort had been made to build tension and suspense, this slightly interrupted the atmosphere and pace at that point. The cast handled the shift into the paranormal comedy style with confidence. The sound effects themselves were timed well and were effective, helping to create atmosphere and support the comic supernatural moments. Overall, the piece built nicely and provided a solid finish to the evening.

The technical team supported the evening well. Mark Deighton as Stage Manager helped keep the evening running smoothly, while John Tipping on sound and lighting provided clear and well-timed support. The sound effects in the séance play were particularly effective and added greatly to the atmosphere. Sue Tipping as prompt also deserves recognition, along with the directors, cast and crew for their work on set and props. The lighting was simple, largely lights up and lights down, but the group clearly did the best with the facilities available. The fact that it remained daylight until the third act, combined with the number of windows in the auditorium, made atmosphere more difficult to create. The society had made a clear effort to black out the windows with paper, and this was appreciated. In a more flexible venue, there would perhaps be more opportunity to use lighting to create mood and shape each play more distinctly, particularly for the murder mystery and the séance. Projection across the evening was good. I could hear everyone clearly, which is not always easy in a community hall setting. This helped the audience stay connected to the stories and ensured the dialogue landed well.

The choice to present three original one act plays written by members of the society was both brave and rewarding. It gave the audience variety, showcased a wide range of performers and directors, and demonstrated a real sense of creativity within the group. The Longton Players should be very proud of this evening. It showed a society with energy, talent and imagination, and I look forward to seeing what they do next.

 

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