One for the Road

Thank you to all at Charlemont Dramatic Society (CADS) for your hospitality this evening. It was truly great seeing you all again. CADS are an extremely friendly, supportive and welcoming company, from the warm greeting by Front of House, David Payne JP, to the friendlessness and inclusivity of long-time members and influential in the running of the company David and Sylvia Hill, to the atmosphere of feeling totally at ease with the local community and being part of the whole experience, this evening was very special in a lot of ways.

Members of CADS tonight performed Willy Russell’s play, “One for the Road” and they should be very proud of what they have achieved. The production crew and cast worked very hard and they succeeded in providing an amazing night of entertainment with some strong moments. I was fortunate enough to catch their first night of the run and despite the audience numbers being low on this first night, the audience were very responsive, I could tell they enjoyed the evening immensely. The reactions from the audience were spot on as the comedy landed with the desired effect with good moments of confidence and timing. The play was snappy and lots of fun. 

This play has a strong theme of rebellion. The character of Dennis was struggling (a lot) with his current lifestyle, especially as he was heading towards middle age, he gradually comes to the conclusion the only way to escape is to literally escape and disappear by hitting the road with his backpack, leaving everything behind and becoming independent again. It doesn’t quite go according to plan and he changes his mind at the end to stay, it suggests it was the promise of an affair with his neighbour Jane which sealed the deal amongst other things. Throughout the play, Dennis was constantly trying to recreate a life to keep himself entertained and to distract from his “mundane existence”. Dennis defaced Roger’s vegetable patch with spray paint displaying his talent for changing cabbages and cucumbers into male and female anatomy parts. Also, Dennis turned out to be the mysterious Garden Gnome defacer as the culprit chopping off their heads.

His wife Pauline felt quite different to her lifestyle, or she had quite forgotten the free-spirited life she may have had herself or maybe shared with Dennis prior to moving to the estate. Pauline felt a bit more content in fitting in, but towards the end of the play revealed some secrets of her own. Pauline displayed a person who was satisfied they had achieved their place in the world (or society) mainly by owning a property on an actual estate, in a bungalow, with their own things!

The general norm of what we think we expect through life is interesting to contemplate. Each stage or chapter as it comes to us is reflected upon, do we, like Dennis back track and change direction? It is never too late to be what you might have been, after all.   

Dennis and his wife Pauline invite their neighbours Roger and Jane over for a dinner celebration for Dennis’ 35th Birthday. They brought a lovely physical dynamic to the dinner party unlike Dennis’ parents who were invited, but never showed up. Instead, they were trapped and lost in the estate.  They spent most of the play on the phone asking for directions. There were some nice moments of frustration from Dennis and Pauline and this was delightfully displayed, "all the bungalows look the same" which continued to confuse Dennis’ parents even more. The imagery of these two being lost was fun and relatable due to the wonderful acting on the telephone of Richard Corrado who played Dennis and Danielle Cook who played Pauline. 

Richard Corrado played Dennis with a superb mix of personality, with an interpretation which surprised and remained unpredictable as he struggled through his personal journey of realisation.

Triggered by his Birthday and anger which was fuelled by drink, Dennis falls into a reactive turmoil, full of frustration at his life so far. His only real pleasure seemed to be taking time to enjoy his records peacefully on his own, until he decides to sabotage that and seek pleasure by flinging them like frisbees across the garden. His birthday present he received from Roger, a record travel case, suggested to me he could if he wanted to bring his records with him on the road. Obviously, these things were not practical to take with him and Dennis continued to vandalise and break things as a way of coping. Probably even more satisfying was breaking a John Denver record. Safe to say Dennis was not a fan of John Denver.

Pauline, his wife, played by Danielle Cook was excellently cast. Danielle kept her Liverpudlian accent consistent and strong and portrayed the character of Pauline with a nice level headed approach she was trying to adhere to. Pauline felt that this was the right (normal) thing to do, to fit in. Kind of!

Roger, played by Richard  Mayes was very funny and kept a nice exuberance to his character with a nice energy. Jane, his wife, played by Emilie Tunnacliffe had great moments of witty interaction and excellent timing. The interaction between all 4 characters worked well with some of the best moments coming out when the cast relaxed. You could tell there was some seriously hard work on the stage tonight with excellent teamwork and support. 

Some of the biggest laughs of the evening came from Dennis and Roger throwing records in the garden which accidentally destroyed every pane of glass of Roger’s greenhouse, the revelation that Roger had been having an affair with pretty much everybody and the wonderfully delivered Terry Wogan scene which was really funny. The audience were with the action all of the way and there was a nice reaction when the audience showed they were two steps ahead when Dennis received a wrapped birthday present the shape of a record. John Denver!

The director David Hill successfully brought out the gold in the script. The writing being as strong as it is. The cast portrayed it with excellent analysis and character interpretation. Back stage, lights and sound as usual provided a successful production and wrapped up a positive and successful working team.

A very special acknowledgement to David and Sylvia Hill who after many years of support and contribution they have given to CADS are moving forward to help support CADS in other ways. My first experience of CADS will remain memorable for me and this was mainly due to the incredible community spirit David and Sylvia helped create with genuine friendly ease.

The Autumn production is yet to be announced, but it will be showing 22nd-25th November 2023 at Gayton Community Centre B71 1QS. Be sure to check out www.thecads.weebly.com for more details and how to book tickets.

Congratulations to you all. You smashed it! I hope you took some time to enjoy the moment and I wish you all the very best for the future. Take care.

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