No Sex Please We're British

~~This fast running farce is typical of the genre, with people coming in and out of a number of entrances on stage.  There were occasions when I felt the action was a bit far-fetched, but that is the script that the Director has to work with and he made the best of it.   The script is outdated for today’s audiences and it does, therefore, have some nostalgia for a time when even mentioning sex was considered completely out of the question.   It takes a lot of excellent timing to make such plays a success.  In this performance the timing was generally OK but it could have been slicker.  However, it was the first night so there is room for the cast to settle down.

The cast produced some good performances Matthew Pearson (Peter Hunter) and Rebecca Smith (Frances Hunter) made a good couple, with plenty of opportunities to react to what was happening.    Linda Raymond was good as the haughty and snobbish Eleanor Hunter and Keith Goody (Leslie Bromhead) provided an excellent portrayal of the archetypal Senior Manager of the period.  Sam Haskell played the pivotal role of Brian Runnicles with great characterisation, however I did feel it was just a little too ‘over the top’ which unbalanced the action somewhat.

The remaining members of the cast all gave good performances, although the blocking was a bit obvious at times.  At one point it was clear to me that someone was going to come rushing through the door as everyone stood well clear!  The trick with farce is to make it completely natural and, if someone gets knocked aside in the process that adds to the action.

The comedy was delivered with good timing and produced plenty of laughs from the audience; some, I suspect, not intentional!

The set was excellent, solid and well built (so important when people are slamming doors all the time!) and the costumes were, in the main, perfect for the period.

A good evening’s entertainment, thank you Blackmore Players

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