Dead Man's Cellphone

CADS Theatre Club have an uncanny ability of being able to unearth some quirky gems of theatrical intrigue and “Dead Man’s Cellphone” is no exception.  Sarah Ruhl’s witty, off-beat yet engaging tale is based on the premise of someone in a café becoming utterly bound up in the life of s complete stranger after answering their cellphone – the twist – the owner of the phone has just died! 

From the outset the audience are willingly immersed into the plot, Craig and Sara Hill’s production cleverly entices to find out more – atmospheric music accompanies the action, an extremely simple yet absolutely perfect set, designed by Craig Hill and the Construction Team, easily depicts the various locations, extremely convincing performances keep you wanting to know more about all of the characters – some revelations being slightly uncomfortable but integral to the plot.  All of the ingredients for a thoroughly thought-provoking and enjoyable evening at the theatre.

Tammy Steventon, who played ‘Jean’ – the cellphone answerer was utterly convincing in her portrayal, her inquisitive nature was demonstrated beautifully in this charmingly endearing performance. She was ably supported by some superb characterisations all coming together as a tight and highly talented team.  Particularly worthy of mention were Emilie Tunnacliffe as the ‘Other Woman’ as well as ‘The Stranger’ and Ryan Corry as ‘Dwight’, both subtly handling the surreal nature of their roles yet making them totally true to life.

In the second act we get to know more about Gordon, the late phone owner, played with an understated yet disarmingly tantalising portrayal leaving the audience in a quandary as to whether they should respect or loath the character.  What is not in doubt is that you admire Richard Corrado’s performance

As I said, Craig and Sara’s production was a superb example of teamwork in action.  The other characters:  Jamie Cross’ ‘Mrs Gottlieb’, Gordon’s sharp tongued mother with dubious singing talent; Niamh Smith’s ‘Hermia’, the wife who, whilst making love to Gordon pretended it was someone else and Jess Dobson-Smyth and Lauren Payne as the ‘Extras’  all slotted in perfectly adding to the intrigue of the piece..

Another star of the show was the excellent sound and lighting design and operation in the safe hands of Andrew Richards, Sara Hill and Daniel Richards which portrayed the weirdness of the setting excellently.  Ably complemented by Stage Manager and Deputy Stage Manager, Michael Steventon and Sadie Moon and their team and their almost seamless transition from scene to scene.

Thank you to everyone at CADS for their warm welcome to yet another extremely entertaining of captivating theatre.

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