Boeing Boeing

The first night audience for this well-known comedy took their seats and waited with eager anticipation for the “tabs” to open hopefully onto an exceptional set that has come to be expected from this talented company.

Following an amusing “in flight mode” front of house announcement, welcoming everyone on board, expectations were fully realised as the curtains went back to reveal the stunning sitting-room of a  Paris apartment, receiving a fully deserved round of applause.  

The primary colours of red, yellow, and blue on the doors, later reflected in the individual air hostess uniforms, made an immediate impact and a perfect setting for the action to follow.

Bernard had put his own interpretation on a “ménage á trois”, by entertaining his three air hostess fiancées as they flew intermittently into town on different routes. He juggled successfully  with the possible complexities of these arrangements with the somewhat begrudging co-operation of his long-suffering maid Bertha, who changed the photos accordingly and cooked appropriate meals for Gloria from America, Gretchen from Germany, and Gabriella from Italy. 

All is running smoothly until Bernard’s old school friend Robert arrives unexpectedly and a new “super” Boeing is commissioned which causes havoc with the flight schedules!

It was clear from the outset that Bernard was up to something, and all was revealed when he explained the many advantages of his “arrangements” to the rather shy and reticent Robert, who was thrown quickly into the “deep end” when the situation began to fall apart!

In good old “Brian Rix” style the action got faster and faster with lots of exits and entrances through the myriad of doors, and the timing was impeccable!

As the plot thickened poor Bernand became increasingly desperate as he saw his “perfect arrangements” begin to collapse around him, while on the other hand Robert seemed to gain in confidence and begin to relish in the situation!

Of course, everything turned out well in the end! Gloria flew back to the States having received a better offer from over the “pond” which had apparently been her “game plan” all along! Gretchen and Robert, having been thrust together often during her various arrivals, fell in love and became engaged, the scene with their confusion around the town of Aix was particularly well played! This left poor Bernard with just one fiancée, the feisty Gabriella, who was most certainly capable of keeping him on the straight and narrow in the future!

All the cast were  excellent in their roles and played together as a fantastic team.

Bernard was perfectly suave and charming, you truly believed that he cared for each individual girl every time they flew in, and his descent into hopeless confusion was palpable.

The role of Robert was also very well performed, initially nervous and unassuming, he coped “manfully” with every awkward situation he was thrown into, the character grew in stature as the play went on and the two men performed well against each other.   

The air hostesses were superb, all three sharp and sassy, displaying their very different  personalities and cultures, they were certainly not “shrinking violets” in any way.

Their uniforms were perfect each one in a signature colour, red, yellow, and blue to denote the airline, with matching flight bags and amazing shoes – well done! 

At times Gretchen’s dress had a tendency to ride up, but she coped with this well and didn’t allow it to detract at all from her performance. 

Bertha the maid, was very well played and almost stole the show, she had the audience on side from start to finish. Her expressions and comments were simply hilarious, and her actions with the crockery and trays as she negotiated her way in and out of the swing doors to the kitchen brought the house down every time! 

The differing accents were well sustained, and  for the most part didn’t get in the way of the dialogue as can sometimes happen, although just at the start a few lines were difficult to decipher. 

 A lot of hard work and attention to detail had obviously gone into the production. In addition to the uniforms and flight bags already mentioned the 3 clocks on the walls, one strikingly depicting the Eifel Tower, seemed to be set at different times, and moved as the action went along, and the cigarettes were Gauloises!  

The music was perfectly chosen with Frank Sinatra’s “Come Fly with Me” and Je t’aime featuring prominently, occasionally the tracks were cut short when perhaps a slow fade might have been better, but it was the first night!

Some small points in a production that was a pure delight, a riot of fun from beginning to end and extremely well received by a most appreciative audience – many congratulations to the first-time director and all the cast members and support team. A lovely evening!

 

Any observation made by the reviewer can only be based on what they see at the performance in question.  The reviewer may have received information in advance of the performance, and it is inevitable that their assessment will be affected by that knowledge.

The N.O.D.A. Representative’s intention is to give an objective critique of the overall production and in particular the performance viewed.  It should be remembered that any review of this nature can only be objective as far as the techniques used during the performance observed.  Any criticisms expressed may not have been valid at other performances and are only made to encourage higher standards in Amateur Theatre.

It is hoped that the audience’s appreciation of your efforts will have given everyone a lift and encouraged you to greater achievements in the future and that the observations made by the reviewer will prove helpful in improving future productions.

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