Sheila’s Island

For this production the hall was beautifully laid out with an arrangement of tables, each with attractive sparkly fairy lights, audiences were invited to bring a picnic, a bar was on tap, and as usual we received a lovely warm welcome.

The open stage painted a rather bleak picture for the action to come with wild overgrown trees and bushes, not at all a welcoming and hospitable scenario, fog drifted across the set with the sound of  lapping water and wind – there was certainly a chill in the air!

Four middle aged colleagues in the Lake District for a sailing team-building exercise over Bonfire Weekend find themselves stranded on an island when the deciphering skills of their leader, supposedly taking them safely from clue to clue, prove to be somewhat lacking!

When their boat is shipwrecked on the rocks the soaking wet ladies drag themselves to shore one by one, the different personalities began to manifest themselves and rivalries and back stories unfolded.

Billed as a comedy the piece certainly had some hilarious moments that were very well received on the night, but there were underlying darker issues within each character, influencing their behaviour and interaction with each other. What a mixed bunch they were!

Sheila the sensible but inept “captain of the ship” had unfortunately worked out their first move according to her “cryptic crossword” skills and instead of proceeding to The Plough pub by the green railings came up with a complicated scenario involving Ursa Major and the plough constellation – hence the shipwreck! 

Julie was ultra organised and managed to rescue her simply huge kitbag which held more goodies to cover every eventuality than Mary Poppins’ bag, including a large scimitar style knife! She seemed contented but a little insecure and as the action moved on doubts crept in about good old husband Angus, who failed to come to their rescue when she phoned and left an SOS message – even though as she assured the others “he hardly ever goes out”! 

Denise was particularly forthright in speaking her mind, acerbic and confrontational she took great pleasure in teasing poor Julie about Angus’s visits to Aldi, and her line about saving the ‘phone like the Statue of Liberty drifting to shore was very funny. Making up the four was Faye, a committed Christian and keen bird watcher who was absolutely amazed and delighted to catch sight of  the exceedingly rare Gryfalcon. She had recently had a 13 month “holiday” from work which the others began to interpret instead as a nervous breakdown, and the waters got very muddy later when she disappeared into the wild! 

Of course, Denise’s kitbag which was lost in the shipwreck had contained all the food but ….. Julie was found to have one lonely sausage!  A very funny scene followed when the ladies decided to heat this up on Julie’s Calor gas stove in her frying pan, with a choice of spatulas, and divide it into four. There was much debate as to who should have which piece but unfortunately as Faye decided to say “grace”, Julie in her wisdom made the sign of the cross with the frying-pan and the sausage exited DSR!  

In the words of Faye “the Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away”!

This seemed perhaps to be a good ending to Act I but there was a little further to go when blood was found, and concern raised that perhaps someone else was on the island. Hope of rescue was unfounded when a boat motored by with loud music and flashing lights, but it was just Keswick Council celebrating Bonfire Night!

Act II opened with yet more fog, you could almost feel the chill again creeping across the island and into the auditorium. The four ladies entered back on stage singing that good old Girl Guide favourite KumBa Yah, wearing Humphrey Davey lamps as they negotiated their way around the foliage, and it was “happily” revealed that the blood came from pigeons killed by the falcon rather than some intimidating presence on the island. 

Denise continued to ask about Angus sowing further doubts in Julie’s mind, and a slice of pizza drifted ashore but was rejected as inedible. For a moment they thought that rescue was imminent when a plane was spotted circling overhead but on close examination it was trailing a banner advertising a “firework display”.

Frustration came to the fore again when an emergency flare was discovered in Julie’s bag but unfortunately to no avail because of course it was Bonfire Night! Eventually a rescue helicopter did arrive, but how much had the gruelling experience taken a toll on their lives?

This was a tricky piece to tackle, the National Tour having received mixed reviews, but the production was sensitively directed, and all four roles distinctly interpreted. 

Faye was sincerely portrayed, and the north country accent sustained throughout. Sensible Sheila tried “manfully” to maintain the status quo and keep their spirits up. A strong performance came from the cynical Denise, displaying a character with robust opinions. Julie was just right as the dependable member of the team, fussy but obviously the “stalwart” of the office, she managed to convey a certain lack of self-confidence and insecurity, especially when she began to have qualms about Angus! 

The cast coped well with some technical issues with the lighting in Act II, and as the action took place on Bonfire Night it could have well seemed part of the effects! 

The set was representative of a wild isolated island, but the grassy bench was perhaps a tad too square – just a tiny observation. All the costumes and props were just right for the story - and the knife looked very lethal!

An enjoyable but thought-provoking evening and we can only speculate what Angus did get up to with that assistant in the bread aisle in Aldi!

Any observation made by the reviewer can only be based on what they see at the performance in question.  The reviewer may have received information in advance of the performance, and it is inevitable that their assessment will be affected by that knowledge.

The N.O.D.A. Representative’s intention is to give an objective critique of the overall production and in particular the performance viewed.  It should be remembered that any review of this nature can only be objective as far as the techniques used during the performance observed.  Any criticisms expressed may not have been valid at other performances and are only made to encourage higher standards in Amateur Theatre.

It is hoped that the audience’s appreciation of your efforts will have given everyone a lift and encouraged you to greater achievements in the future and that the observations made by the reviewer will prove helpful in improving future productions.

 

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