The River

Skipton Players excelled themselves this week with their production of The River by Jez Butterworth. The combination of the dark intimacy which is the Little Theatre’s USP and the magnificent writing of one of Britain’s finest playwrights was utterly beguiling. What a shame more of the Little Theatre’s regular clientele didn’t give it a try, as the audience was only half full. What a treat they missed.

The first impression as we entered the space was that we were actually a part of the action, seated inside this log cabin in the woods. The set was magnificent and the attention to detail delightful. Many congratulations to the whole team behind set construction, props and costume: Philip Smith, Patrick Smith, Roxanne Williams, Dale Chadwick and Ruthie Rogerson. Wonderfully subtle lighting and sound set the mood for the piece. The music choices were excellent and not only did they cover the transitions but they also fed into the mood of the piece in a way used more generally in film. This was a soundtrack which many in the audience will not have even noticed, but it built the mood and the tension throughout the piece. Congratulations to Maxine Caddell on sound and lights.

This is a tale of a man and his search for the perfect woman. This is the second time I have seen the play. The first time I was quite sure that The Man was murdering these poor young women, but Andy Price gave us a rather different interpretation. For me, Andy’s Man was a rather sad character who was trying to live up to a father figure he had greatly admired; the misogynist uncle who brought an endless stream of women to the cabin and despised each one of them.  Andy was totally believable in this role and the audience always knew they were in safe hands. It was a delightful performance.

Rhiannon Cawthorne and Mary-Frances Doherty both gave excellent and very contrasting performances as the visiting women. Just as the audience were intrigued about the Man’s motivation, so the two women battled with their confusing relationship. Was this a one-night stand or an attempt at something more meaningful? Is the secret under the bed an attempt at a proposal or a way of saying goodbye? The audience rode this emotional roller coaster with these two women. The piece is beautifully written and there are no wrong answers to what is going on; but these two actors certainly gave us ample opportunities for speculation. The third woman was uncredited, but she brought another dimension to the story too. I haven’t seen any of these actors on stage at Skipton before but I do hope they will return as they all gave quality performances.

All credit to Dale Chadwick and his assistant Helen Procter for this excellent production. I have worked on this stage and know its size but tonight it felt like the perfect space, certainly not too small. The moves around the cabin were meaningful and natural, the relationships were beguiling, the performances just the perfect size for the space with great intimacy but also perfect audibility. Among the suspense, the humour was also well handled which occasionally lightened the mood to make this a wonderful evening’s entertainment. In the interval and at the end the audience were talking about the play and I’m sure they will be speculating on its meaning for many days to come. This is the mark of a good play. It was an excellent choice, well done to you all.

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