Season's Greetings

Season’s Greetings is a 1980 play by Alan Ayckbourn taking place from Christmas Eve through to the morning after Boxing Day. It tells the story of Neville and Belinda Bunker who play host to family and friends for a traditional Christmas celebration. The setting is the interior of their home and the set very cleverly depicts the various areas where throughout the play the action takes place - the lounge with the inevitable TV, the dining room, the hall and staircase. The imaginary entrance to the house is at the front of the stage (with welcome mat and pot plant) with access from the side of it. Obviously, the dining room was in use for the many different meals they have over the period and for other activities, and I thought the way that this was achieved by just taking away the top of the table complete with crockery and cutlery etc. and replacing it with another top that was already ‘laid’ for the next scene, was sheer genius! We first meet Neville and Belinda’s Uncle Harvey who is absolutely obsessed with watching the television, particularly the more violent programmes. He was a security guard and now carries a knife in his sock and his presents for the children consist of guns! Barrie Goodwin is ideal in this role strongly delivering the humour, initially, and later becoming a rather manic, gun-shooting, unhinged individual. Paul Harrison gave a praiseworthy performance as Neville, a successful business man, who is totally preoccupied with anything mechanical at the expense of giving any attention to his wife, Belinda, who is sexually and emotionally deprived because of this. It is therefore, no surprise that she is immediately attracted to Clive on his arrival at the house but who happens to be, her sister’s guest! Maria Carnegie was excellent as Belinda and her passionate midnight contretemps with Clive, superbly played by Dan Large, was hilarious, especially when Neville’s remote control invention for switching on the tree lights and playing music and a mechanical ‘rabbit’ were both activated by their lustful antics. This caused mayhem, with the inevitable arrival of everyone at the top of the stairs!  Jayne Marling astutely captured the insecurities of Rachel, Belinda’s sister, with great sensitivity and I loved the performance by Karen Nicholas of  Phyllis, Neville’s alcoholic sister. Her husband Bernard, a rather ineffectual doctor who is passionate about his annual puppet show which everyone else absolutely dreads the thought of, was splendidly played by Paul Harrison and his ‘puppet show rehearsal’, was masterfully delivered. I thought the marionettes were terrific and the whole scene was a definite highlight. The actual marionettes depicting the characters from the story of ‘The Three Little Pigs’, were made for the group by Buxton’s puppet theatre, Funny Wonders, who also ran workshops to help Paul with their operation. Eddie, the extremely dismissive and lazy husband of Pattie, was admirably played by Peter Stubbington and as his pregnant wife, Emma Craufurd-Stuart was totally convincing. This was my first visit to this group and I was privileged to witness such a talented group of actors delivering a most entertaining festive-themed play of fun, tinged with a little drama, in very pleasant surroundings. Congratulations to everyone involved, especially to Director Robbie Carnegie.

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