It Runs in the Family

Ray Cooney’s plays are always good entertainment and well worth watching, none more so than the Society’s production of “It Runs In The Family”

Here we have Dr David Mortimore (Ivan Hall) frantically preparing his address to two hundred medical delegates from all over the world when without warning an ex nurse at the hospital turns announcing that she nurse Jane Tate (Polly Stephenson) who left rather hurriedly some nineteen years ago because she was pregnant and Dr Mortimore was the father of her now eighteen year old boy! These two characters were excellent for the whole giving voice to anger, denial, incredulity and frustration mainly as a result of Mortimore’s agile and paranoid mind inventing every excuse to hide the fact that he is indeed the father.

Being in a small and enclosed community word soon gets round and awkward questions are asked. Dr Hubert Bonney (Chris Wales) as the slow on the uptake colleague gave a performance which brought out his confusion, warm heartedness and the uncanny way in which he could be put into a corner and manipulated by Mortimore. This was a class act and showed the scope of this talented actor.

Kenzie Greenwood as Rosemary Mortimore gave a studied performance of the wronged wife even though she was duped for much of the act by her husband’s twisting and turning but eventually revealing as a final denouement that she also had had an affair!

In the midst of the uproar it is announced that the son, Leslie (Jack Buck) has arrived seeking his real father but he is in the hands of a police sergeant (Ian Dobson) for several misdemeanours. These two, one, giving the impression of a modern layabout and the other a somewhat confused police officer trying to put a group of situations together  and not coming up with a solution, showed the depth and quality of the cast on which Whitby can draw.

Katrina Stead as Lady Willoughby, the head of the hospital’s governing body spent the entire show attempting to get Mortimore to give his lecture and trying to sort out the confusion whilst constantly downing large glasses of whisky on every entrance.

Penny Cullen (Matron), Steve Upton (Bill), Sally Jones (Mother). Jordan Butler (Dr Mike Connolly) and Chris Copeland (Porter) all added to the show in their own characters and complementing the main cast.

The set was well constructed with three working doors and it was a surprise to see doors being slammed and the set not moving. Lighting was pre-set and gave more than adequate illumination to the doctor’s common room where the action took place.

Wardrobe also showed how much thought had gone into costuming a large cast with attention to detail.

This show had the audience in fits of laughter throughout the performance as the comedy was well put over and the standard so high that the only word I can truly say is professional !

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