The Foreigner

This superb comedy was from the pen of the late Larry Shue, who was tragically killed in a 'plane crash before he was forty.   With  a cast of only seven and set in 2013 (there was mention of the Duke of Cambridge having an, as yet unnamed,  son) in Betty Meeks' fishing lodge in Georgia, the arrival of two Englishmen - one of whom was "The Foreigner" - provided the perfect vehicle for hilarious comedy.   It must be said the script, written in 1984, was a masterpiece with so many layers of comedy, pathos, drama, menace and violence intertwined.

A magnificent set of Betty Meeks'  log cabin rightly won a deserved round of applause when the curtain opened.   Designed by Martin Beatty together with the director Tricia Whyte and built by Martin and Barn Theatre friends with painting by Patrick Tricker, this was the best set on a small stage I have seen this year.

Set against the background of the Klu-Klux-Klan evil, which was not immediately apparent, the central theme of a somewhat shy Englishman being passed off as Charlie, a foreigner who neither spoke nor understood English was comic gold in the hands of a colossus such as Peter Calver.   As the central character, on stage virtually throughout , whilst spending a portion of the first act mute - apart from saying "Thank you" - his performance was one of the most memorable I have seen whilst a NODA Rep.

Every little facial nuance was pure joy and, when in act two, with the help of Teddy Stevenson, playing the simple Ellard Simms, Charlie began to "learn and speak" English in staggeringly quick fashion (albeit with a deep south accent), the cat was truly set among the pigeons.  At a mere seventeen years of age, Teddy Stevenson gave a compelling and splendid performance which, in my view, proves beyond doubt that his ambition to go onto the professional stage is a wise one.   Upon meeting Teddy afterwards, I was struck by his humility and level headedness.   He is also a handsome young man and all these qualities combined with his prodigious talent will win him friends both within and without the business.

Chris Bassett as Froggy (an army explosives expert and Charlie's friend, was the man who summarily introduced Charlie to the others as a "foreigner", in an attempt to spare the outwardly shy Charlie from unwanted conversations) flitted in and out of the play in confident fashion.  His explosive expertise finally ended the imminent KKK threat.    A cheerful, somewhat brash but kindly and thoroughly decent character was Froggy.    Chris captured  these qualities admirably, possessing excellent timing and adding some wonderful touches of his own.

Playing the mature, mothering type, Betty Meeks, the lodge owner, Wendy O'Mahony in charismatic and special style Wendy imbued Betty with  a sharp tongue at times but always batted for good against the evil of the KKK so beloved by the nasty, bullying Owen Musser, Steve Bedford as Owen was fearsome, unlovable, hard drinking and very menacing and relished being the baddie.   Steve was  excellent in the role, but as Owen, if I may borrow from Monty Python, he was "a very naughty boy" indeed.   But more villainous than naughty in fact!

One of the juiciest roles was the Rev. David Lee.   Phil Fry found and displayed all the depth and cunning in this subversive character, superficially charming at times, but later revealed in his true colours as a bullying money grabbing Mr Nasty and very far from a true man of God!   His bullying of Ellard and Charlie was powerfully enacted and provided emotional drama aplenty.

Laura Brand endowed the recently pregnant Catherine Simms with a goodness and wholesomeness, but with a distinct individualistic personality.   Laura gave a peach of a performance and ran the gamut of emotions from being taken in by Rev. Lee and then having her eyes opened as to his and Owen's true selves.

The interaction between the various players was so real and despite the mainly Southern American accents, which were uniformly well done, all the dialogue was distinctly heard.   Charlie's range of accents when attempting English and also when speaking in gibberish were not only comic delights but showcased a range of cod Russian, German and Spanish sounding accents among others.  The way that his highly switched-on character played with the mind of the racist Owen was wondrous to see.   When later in the play Charlie spooked Owen and terrified him , I only just managed to resist -in the main- the constant urge to laugh out loud, lest I missed the following gem of dialogue.  The interplay between Charlie and Ellard in particular was sheer magic and how they learned from each other was heartwarming to  watch.

Costumes, which were well fitted and totally suitable for the modern setting were almost all provided by the cast. No wardrobe person, however, was mentioned, unusually. Apparently one military costume was provided by Angels, the top  professional costumiers. Sound was supplied by John Chinnock, the Bank of England choice and lighting, also top notch, by Martin Lloyd assisted by Tom Allgood.

As you will realise, I did not just like this production but loved it and everything about it.  The inspirational director Tricia Whyte has a triumph on her hands, as anyone in the enthusiastic audience will doubtless concur.   Her direction of this masterpiece will live long in the memory,  not only of the talented and together cast for certain but also in the memory of anyone as fortunate as I was to be there on the night that TOP set the bar almost unbeatably high.

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