Sleighed To Deah

Sleighed To Death by Peter Gordon is another ever popular story in the Inspector Pratt series. A funny romp, through a Christmas event, set in the country manor house of Sir Walton Gates.

The stage set was lovely, with lots of attention to detail, which is a common feature of all Waddington’s productions. Tartan wall covering, wooden paneling and plush furniture all added to the ambiance, including the Christmas tree and presents. Julie Addison and her team had done a fabulous job of creating this performance space. A spontaneous round of applause from the audience when the curtain opened was good to hear. Well done Adrian Pell for all the efforts including the practical doors, and painted wintery backdrop.

Inspector Pratt was played by Neil Markland (once again!), with huge energy, excellent diction and wonderful storytelling. His lines included so many spoonerisms and errors, that it must have been so hard to memories, but he was word perfect. His ease on stage and confident performance were wonderful. Julie Addison played Morag Mackay complete with an excellent Scottish accent and delightful mannerisms which brought her character to life. Another confident performance by Julie, well done.

Gary Wright played the kindly Sir Walton Gates, limping around on stage and dressed in a kilt, his larger-than-life characterisation was well performed. A little more work on diction might have improved his performance even more, something to work on for the future, yet did not distract too much from the fun he was having on stage. His wife Lady Grace Gates was played by Dee Horne, whose facial expressions, body language, and energy were wonderful. Dee’s third outing with Waddington and she goes from strength to strength. The chemistry between Gary and Dee was strong, with lots of attention to detail and many comic moments that had the audience laughing along.

Andy Brown, who always looks great on stage, played the supposed stranger James Washington. Andy played this character well with excellent comic timing and reactions to the action on stage. Kelly Strickland (new to WDS) played Lord Gate’s daughter.  Emma’s role, complete with plummy English accent and a certain tall elegance, suited the role well. Both Gary and Kelly worked well together and their relationship flaws were created masterfully.

Another newbie, Jade Canavan played the Constable Mary Potter, dressed as a Christmas Angel. Jade was very funny, utilised excellent comic timing, and just the right amount of absurdity and temper. Neil and Jade worked well together on stage demonstrating Pratts incompetence. Tony Gates played the Australian brother Archie Gates. Dressed in shorts, Oz style, despite the winter weather, and created a delightfully odd character and possible interloper to complete the cast.

The costumes were lovely, Jane Kelly had enhanced the show with a good range of outfits that suited the production and characters. Rob Steadman had written an original piece of music for this show and again this enhanced the production, another team member who WDS must be very proud of.  On the technical side of things, David Ridout and Peter Cheseldine managed the sound, lighting, and effects well. A few issues with the mics, which can happen, but the actors covered really well. (Don’t touch your mic!)

The direction was done well, Maria Wagstaff and Kayleigh Hellard’s first time as part of the directing team, Julie Addison completes the trio and I feel they worked well together. I think having an assistant director helps bring on new talent, so I hope to see them in directorial roles in the future.

Thank you for the usual warm welcome and chat after the show, I feel there is very little you couldn’t achieve. You seem to punching way above your weight, and I can’t wait for ‘When We Are Married ‘ by J B Priestly in May next year.

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