Blithe Spirit

In what proved to be a very busy half-term week TIPPS kindly accepted a visit on the evening of their Dress Rehearsal. The curtains opened to an attractive set suitably decorated and dressed for the period, and the humour of the piece was quickly established as the ungainly maid weaved her way in from the hall carrying, rather unsteadily, a large tray of cocktail items! Regulars in the audience would have been pleased to see familiar faces from the group on stage as the characters were introduced and the plot of this well-known piece unfolded. Writer Charles Condomine invites Madame Arcarti, a local medium, to conduct a séance at his home, for background for his next book. Making up the party with Charles and his second wife Ruth are Dr and Mrs Bradman, and as the evening progresses his first wife Elvira returns from the dead, and proceeds to create mayhem! The roles of Ruth and Elvira, were effectively cast, and poles apart! Ruth was smart-looking and organised, but domineering and acerbic, while Elvira was ethereal, mischievous and flirty!  Doctor Bradman was spot on, grounded and sceptical – he had seen it all before – and was well accompanied by his suitably excitable wife Violet, both managing to show their differing expectations for the forthcoming evening.  The casting of Madame Arcarti was just right, the part was embraced with relish and she looked perfectly divine!  The role of the irascible Charles was quietly, but sincerely portrayed, with the actor putting his own stamp on the character. An impeccable but at times ironic host, he strived to be an attentive husband while torn between divided loyalties, and spiritual distractions!  The one to one scenes between Charles and Elvira worked particularly well. Completing the cast the inept maid did sterling work, doing everything at the double, and proved to be the catalyst to the plot at the end! The set was well designed, with some nice touches. The warm glow from the “wood-burning” stove added to the atmosphere, and the props, furniture and décor were well sourced.  On reflection the positioning of the US light switch did rather spoil the balance of the attractive leaf murals either side of the double doors, but perhaps limited space prevented the doors from opening outwards. Also the large sofa, although splendid, did tend to restrict the acting space, and perhaps the “awful shawl” referenced by Elvira should have been in evidence from the start. The placing of the armchair DSC at a slight angle occasionally made for some difficult sight lines, and caused dialogue to be delivered up stage. However “special effects” were cleverly executed, and the lighting and sound complemented the piece, with some typical Coward “ditties”, and a scratchy rendition of Always. The costumes were right for the era and the ghostly two-piece for Ruth’s return from the “other side” was a clever touch. The production was an ambitious undertaking for TIPPS and the whole cast gave their all to keep the action and the story on track. At the rehearsal the prompt was evident at times, but perhaps on this occasion his dulcet Sottish brogue gave an extra sense of fun to Coward’s never failing “talent to amuse”!

‘Tricia Barclay

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