DNA AND SHAKERS

I was warmly welcomed at Front of House by Director Lea Friend, and spoke with her after the performance.

Two one act plays were performed with different casts and Directors.

DNA

This play involves a fictional gang of young people all with disparate characters and stresses who have apparently done something “really bad”.

Staging was minimal with a black set and a bench and scattered leaves to denote a park. Clever use of lighting achieved a change of set on part of the stage.. There was a cast of 11 young actors with very clearly defined characters. The lead roles of Phil, played by George Deadman and Leah, played by Jess Wallis were an unlikely pair as Phil was slow and ponderous and he carefully considered all his words and actions before speaking whilst Leah was lively and articulate and almost delivered monologues due to lack of response from Phil. Other characters were Margot (Tasha Abbott) and Jan ( Ella Peartree) who had bullied The Boy Adam (Ian Russell). Danny, played by Max Riches was an ordinary boy aiming to become a dentist and Cathy, played by Jazz Ely was loud and aggressive and had no remorse for the “bad”deed. Richard, played by Ewen Beeson-Cocks was a would be leader. Brian, played by Finlay Dennis was a weak character constantly bullied and ridiculed by the gang. Lou was played by Rebecca Hutchinson and Jo Tate by Zahra Noray.

Without exception all these actors played their characters brilliantly with real depth of feeling and realistic interpretation, highlighting current problems of gang culture and bullying. All the dialogue and diction was very clear. Lots of discussion points here!

This was a challenging production in which Director Ben Maytham displayed great innovation and direction in showcasing the talents of these young actors.. Well done to everyone involved.

SHAKERS

This was an attractive set showing a wine bar in the north of England in the 80s with a black bar and table, pink chairs and a banner on the front of the bar which “flipped” to show the names of different locations. The costumes of the four female actors maintained the black and pink combination with black T shirts and pink trousers.

I liked the pre-opening “warm up” which helped to set the plot. There were four long suffering waitresses, Shannon-Marie Parker as Carol, Bethany Jones as Adele, Eleanor Chandler as Niki and Phoebe Martin as Mel. These feisty characters covered issues of sexism, unemployment, prejudice and other social issues of the day. The dialogue was loud, constant and the action frantic and full of energy. The timing was so important and the girls had impeccable timing.

There was much mime in this play including mixing and pouring drinks, trying on clothes and playing different characters eg patrons and the girls had perfected the art of mime. In addition, they played very convincingly a multitude of different characters whom they had met. Throughout there was so much comedy either in the actual script or in the interpretation of it.

Good lighting and sound was essential and there were a number of interesting effects eg the sound of tills ringing at Budgens and the neon sign and moving spots and shapes.

All these actors were brilliant and so well cast. Well done to you all!

Director Lea Friend certainly rose to the challenge of directing this play which was a resounding success and a credit to everyone involved.

Congratulations to the society for a very enjoyable evening of entertainment.

 

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