Murder at the Rehearsal

If you have been involved with amateur theatre, on or off stage, this is a play you need to see. The script is full of witty lines and oh so true observations, from the reluctant director guilt tripped into being involved, to actors moaning about each other, gossiping about other groups, and donating their unwanted household items to the props department after a clear out, I giggled along with the audience from the very first scene.

The storyline is just as entertaining if you haven’t got any insider knowledge. As the title suggests, there is a murder at a rehearsal, and a detective soon arrives to deal with the matter. There are plenty of surprises and clues along the way, and you begin to fear for anyone going off stage in case they don’t come back. Director Barbara Llewellyn kept the action focused on the actors, with a single set being a slightly shabby rehearsal space, and using very few props – a practical choice while most of the group’s equipment is in storage during a hut refurbishment, and it worked well. I liked the use of food, with a real bag of chips, and biscuits dunked in cups of tea. I was quite envious watching them.

All nine cast members played their roles with good expression and distinctly different mannerisms from each other, most projected their voices well, though perhaps some of the bickering between them could been a bit tighter, with quicker responses.

Sharon Goodwin played Jill the director with a suitable level of resigned acceptance and some nice moments of stroppy resistance when the actors were being difficult, her hand-wafting to indicate when the actors should move around the stage, and sit down / stand up was very amusing.  Michele Moody was fabulous being the viciously outspoken Mary, she had some of the best lines in the show. Anna Sellers was nicely cast as Gemma with the can-do attitude, and Owen Pitt played the pleasantly pedantic Andy in an impressive first time on stage. Tracey Willmott was Kim with the necessary flair and lack of self-awareness, and Andrew Grant played the full-on theatre luvvy Rory (with a frightened bladder) very well. Clare Williams was Jackie the long-suffering props lady, and Jerry Thomas played the mildly mysterious caretaker Pat, with the memorable line ‘blood is so hard to clean up, I’m knackered!’. Michael Raith had great stage presence as Detective Shaw, it was a good idea to use his natural Scottish accent. There was a lot of dialogue to handle and Michael portrayed the different sides of the detective’s personality so well.

I had some sympathy for the cast dressed in winter wear, thick tights, jumpers and gilet, in the middle of a heatwave.  The passage of time within the production was shown through different outfits for a few days later, and for the following day, while keeping to each persons designated colour which mimicked the pieces in the classic murder-mystery boardgame Cluedo. It was a nice detail that was repeated in the cast photos displayed on the wall.

Very little of the play they were starting to rehearse actually featured in the production, but the three involved - Kim, Mary, and Rory - did a lovely job of changing their speaking voices and mannerisms when they were ‘acting’. The presence of the potential theatre ghost was imagined through well-timed lighting flickers and startling door slams, I nearly jumped out of my seat, well done to the crew.

It is hard to praise the bows without mentioning a spoiler, so I’ll just say that I really enjoyed the creative delivery that the Director chose to go with, it was a very satisfying end to a thoroughly entertaining evening.  My thanks to the front of house team for the warm welcome. It was good to hear that this show has new members in both the crew and onstage, and to see that local community theatre continues to thrive in Writtle. I look forward to seeing the next production by Writtle Cards.

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