The Farndale Avenue Housing Estate Towns Womens Guilds Dramatic Society's A Christmas Carol

The Farndale Avenue Housing Estate Towns Womens Guild Dramatic Society’s production of A Christmas Carol is probably one of the longest play titles -  immediately telling you that you’re in for an hilarious night out! Well the Players most certainly did the Guild justice!

The hall was decorated in festive style, the MD and technical crew donned their Christmas hats and seasonal music was played. Keith Miller accompanied on the piano – a couple of set pieces, some sing-along pieces and Felicity’s tap routine. And we played Charades with a prize from Santa for guessing three correctly!.  Mr Tigwell won and had the honour of taking part with his wonderful script in several unusual places – great fun and the audience loved it!

The scene was set with half open curtains – a Dickensian street on a painted easy running gauze and the large story book displayed on the stand ‘A Christmas Carol’.  The multi-location set, subtly painted with a striped wallpaper at the rear and two panned windows was a simple interior giving a full open stage to work within using just a table and chair, stand up bed for which Thelma as Scrooge could not reach until she was given a stander – so funny, the addition of the walk-on and stuck-in front door, a cut out fire grate where a hand appeared all most effective, and created and constructed by Trevor Lewing.

The technical side was first clsss – how to do things wrong when they’re right!! Peter and Lucy Hogg together did a grand job with effects both sound and lighting.

The play written by British writers David McGillivray & the late Walter Zerlin Jnr. directed by Charlotte Eastes  with six adaptable actors and together with the technical hitches linking the Guild’s theatrical group, their personal hang ups, mishaps and beautifully threaded Christmas story we all love of Scrooge, this was true entertainment.

Making it even more amusing, gum chewing Stage Manager Gordon is drawn into playing roles including Mrs Cratchit and the wonderful section getting his head stuck in Ebenezer’s front door knocker! How Tom Miller kept his straight face I don’t know, and he adapted himself as Jacob Marley in chains, the bottom half of The Ghost of Christmas Present as well as Past and Mr Fezziwig.

Mrs Reece started the proceedings with announcements of apology to all the good folks of the area – the cast being late - with great hand mike moments, off being on and ons being off, being interrupted by emergency services plus the vicar, plus narrating the story with the incorrect pages to changing roles to become Tiny Tim on a really short crutch, Fred’s wife, a gentleman, Mrs Dilber and The Darth Vader lookalike Ghost of Christmas yet to come! Amazing. Wendy Hatch gave a sterling, stiff upper lip performance one might expect from Mrs Reece.

Thelma has a high opinion of her acting skills and of course took the leading role of Ebenezer, was beautifully played with great grumpy Scrooge humbug facial expressions, who as we all know melts after his encounters with ghosts of Christmas past, present and future.  Good comic timing too. Mercedes on her crutch, arm sling and black eye, carried on regardless with juggling crockery, taking knocks and falls as Bob Cratchit, Belle sadly rejected by Scrooge as a young man, plus a boy – great character from Alice Tigwell. Felicity was Vicki Veness, opened as a carrot nosed snowman, was the top half of Christmas Present, Fred, Little Fan and old Joe and we loved her tap routine.  Planted at the end of our row was foreign exchange student in  a national costume and with not a word in English entered the spirit of the evening enjoying the footlights, a very convincing Charlie Miller. Wardrobe was excellent by Sandi Mouzer from evening frocks to Dickensian bonnets, with props from Jenny Turner a perfect picture.

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