Low Pay? Don't Pay!

Thank you very much for inviting me to your production of ‘Low Pay, Don’t Pay’.

‘Low pay? Don’t pay!’ Is a play originally written in the seventies by Italian writer Dario Fo as a political criticism towards landlords and merchants who were increasing the prices of essential productions and the price of rent, and towards the bosses who were cutting jobs, lowering salaries and decreasing benefits. It is said the primary target really was the Italian Communist Party. Subsequently translated by Joseph Farrell in 2010 it was brought up to date to focus on the global banking crisis.

In this production director Steve Bake has sought to make further changes once again drawing on the parallels of the previous two versions placing it right now in 2024 as the country faces a severe cost of living crisis with the price of oil at an all time high, the cost of a weekly shop far more than ever before and the cost of mortgages at the highest we have seen in many decades. The changes made were well executed and fitted seamlessly with the overall production.

Set

The set was effective consisting of the internal structure of an apartment with the front door set on stage right and a cupboard stage left. The apartment was fitted with all you’d expect to find including a fitted kitchen upstage, a dining table and chairs and a sofa further downstage right. The set was very naturalistic in style and was well suited to the show re-iterating the fact that this play was set in the current climate. Despite the fact the set was very naturalistic there were also additional entrances that’s sat outside of the box set that allowed for the cast to enter space from ’outside’ of the apartment for the few scenes that took place outside on the streets. As is typical with The Tamaritans the set was built in-house by their own team who do a tremendous job at creating some excellent sets filled with detail that really does contribute to the overall feel of the production.

Lighting

Lighting was simple in this production which is all that was needed. Lighting states were well planned and allowed for the cast to be clearly visible throughout. There was a few different focus points around the stage which allowed for the audiences attention to be drawn to different areas whether that be inside the apartment or outside on the street. 

Sound

There was a nice selection of music chosen to help with setting the scene. At the opening of the production was a parody song in which the lyrics focussed on the cost of living crisis. Music was used effectively throughout which helped to further highlight the key themes the director had chosen to focus on.

Costume and Makeup

Costumes were mostly plain clothes which was absolutely accurate and suitable for the production. There were some additional character specific costumes that were used throughout such as Police officers, Funeral Directors and a Police inspector. These costumes were effective and well suited to the characters.

Additional comments

This was a production with a small cast and every single member played a pivotal role in moving the narrative forwards. Antonia and Maggie worked together very well and the friendship between them was strong a believable as they desperately tried to hide the secrets they were hiding from their husbands. Giovanni and Luke also had good chemistry as they took the journey towards parenthood and then the realisation that in fact their wives were struggling to make ends meet on their average wages and had been hiding this reality from them. 

The other two performers had quite the task on their hands as they moved between an additional three roles each. They were mostly responsible for either providing a great level of comic relief amongst the serious nature of the content but also played and important role in highlighting the absurdity of the reality that many people from all walks of life are facing.

Congratulations on another fantastic production.

 

Kind regards

   Ryan Procter

   District 3 Representative

© NODA CIO. All rights reserved.