Flint Street Nativity

The Flint Street Nativity a comedy play presented by St Ambrose Players at ‘St Ambrose Halls 4 Hall’, Moss Lane, Leyland on Thursday, 9th February, 2023.
This is clever, witty yet poignant play was penned by the ever so talented Tim Firth. The storyline provides an ideal opportunity for adult actors to release their inner child!  Set in the fictitious Flint Street Primary School, the play focuses on a class of seven-year-olds preparing to give the one and only performance of their annual nativity, guided by their unseen and unheard teacher, Miss Horrocks.  Squabbles and disasters occur… ‘Gabriel’ wants to play ‘Mary’; the grumbling ’star’ suggests that she’s not a proper star like they have at NASA and to top it all ‘Peter Crouch’ is on the loose… problems that can’t be resolved even by the use of an ‘overhead projector’!  At the end, the cast appear as the adult parents of their children they’ve played and we were given a very clear insight as to the reasons behind their children’s behaviours.

I’ve had the pleasure to have seen and been involved with many school nativities over the years and having worked as a volunteer in a playgroup for several years, this really did bring back so many great memories, so many laugh-out-loud moments from those Christmas nativities past!

Production Team… I had the privilege and pleasure to speak with both Paul Regan (Director) and Julie Webster (Assistant Director) during the interval and at the end.  I suggested to them both thatthis must have been a difficult production to stage which was met with total agreement. But having said that, I can only imagine how much fun there must have been along the way. We had a great cast who worked ever so well together creating some amazing individual characters and as soon as those curtains opened were ready and willing to give their all… that enthusiasm just came across those footlights like a wave… the results…  many, many laugh out loud moments with generous audience appreciation throughout… be proud you two great job!

The Cast… I’ve started this paragraph so many times now…WHY?... because, this is where I usually ‘stick my neck out’ and start identifying ‘MY’ favourites, but because the ‘entire cast’ brought their ‘A’ game’ with ‘no weak links’, I didn’t feel it appropriate to start suggesting favourites without perhaps doing injustice to others.  The success of this production wasn’t down to an individual, it was verymuch down to ‘cast togetherness’ which produced this wonderful piece of theatre….    Paul James took on role as ‘Narrator’, an insecure little boy whose parents were in the process of ‘splitting up’. Paul provided us with a totally believable character and in act two a real emotional moment when he realised that his father wasn’t in the audience!  Well done, Paul, great job sir!  Libbie Cowburn (her first production with St Ambrose) played ‘Gabriel’… but she ‘REALLY REALLY’ did want to play ‘Mary’ and even ‘steps in’ when she thinks Mary is ill, introducing her own baby Jesus doll!  Loud, bossy and mean, fabulous characterisation, well-done Libbie be proud!   Alison Griffiths-Barnes gave us a wonderful portrayal as ‘Mary’!  Loved, loved, loved the ‘birth of Jesus’ scene!  Alison enters the stable with Baby Jesus’s legs hanging visible between her own, she sits down and yanks baby Jesus out… during the delivery Jesus’s head falls off and rolls along the stage only to have Fraser Bruce (Joseph), on hand to ‘lash’ the head ‘goalward’ (all will become clear later)! Well… people around me and myself were in tears!  Be ever so proud Alison, great job!  The ‘head kicking’ Fraser Bruce played ‘Joseph and Herod’ with great aplomb!  A shy lad who loves ‘A Question of Sport’ and is very sporty!  All the scenes involving the TV programme were hilarious, but when Jesus’s head falls off and he lashes it goalward… it brought the house down, especially when he starts to roll around the stage floor in celebration!  Loved the ‘smirks and the waves’ to his mum and dad throughout, so realistic, we’ve all seen it … well done Fraser!  I also loved Jennie Barnes’s characterisation of the ‘Shephard’ … so many ‘laugh out loud’ moments, so many great ‘one liners’ …the scene where she describes the birth of a lamb, the ‘play centre’ (placenta), plus her rendition of ‘Silent Night’ sung with ‘different words’ (as were all the ‘carols’) was a major highlight for me… be ever so proud Jennie, great job!   Cerys Clark played ‘The Star’… obsessed with all thing’s science, especially space and space travel due to the fact that she believes her ‘UNCLE TED’ works for NASA… but does he?  PS: Uncle Ted turns out to be her dad!  Well done, Cerys, great job!  Izzie Tennant played an ‘Angel’… an insecure little girl prone to the odd outburst of tears!  She’s very worried because her ‘angel costume’ is better, bigger, brighter than ‘Gabriel’s’, plus her wings actually light up, so she fears the worst… congrats Izzie great job!  Kimberley Barker did a great job as the grumpy innkeeper, at loggerheads with each and everyone. Never out of character, well done Kimberley, be proud!  Louise Taylor and Nicola Preston created two further great characters ‘Wise Frankincense’ and ‘Wise Gold’.  I was particularly impressed with Louise’s efforts in handling the ‘speech impediment’ which created so many difficulties for her saying her lines, dealing with s’s and her saying her own name ‘Frankincense’. The ‘impediment’ was convincing but it didn’t affect our ability to hear / understand all that she said…loved the line ‘There’s lots of names, like Mark and David, so why Jesus’?  Finally, Vikki Watson… was a child who appears to sail through life without a care in the world… we find her hidden throughout under a ‘cardboard ass’s head’… great characterisation Vikki, be proud good job! 

Staging/Set/Tech as always here at St Ambrose Hall 4 All, a purposeful clever set was used throughout which created a very realistic primary school setting and an ideal platform for the actors to perform from. Congrats, as always to Graham Forrest (Stage Manager and Set Designer) and his experienced team of Constructors and Painters... Martin Dempsey, Gordon Manley, Paul Gregson and Paul Regan.
Sound and Lights were good and in the capable hands of Stephen Porter. 
Wardrobe… we had some brilliant inventive costumes which were relevant to the role and which enhanced the production ever so much, well done to Jean Lee, Paul Regan and the cast. 
Props were apt and again enhanced this play… under the watchful eye of Shelia Kenny and Jean Lee

I think the applause at the end and the smiles on everyone’s face as we left the hall said everything that needed to be said about this production.  Well done St Ambrose, this was an excellent production that took many of us back to our childhood. 

Thank you so much for inviting me, I thoroughly enjoyed the evening!  The drive home was filled with laughter, smiles and me thinking about so many great nativities from my past… see you all again soon!

Stay safe, keep well…
‘Stronger Together’

Jim Briscoe

NODA NW
District 6 Rep

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