The Titfield Thunderbolt

Tonight, I had the pleasure of returning to The Daneside Theatre to see Congleton Players first play of their new season, The Titfield Thunderbolt.  This play, a comedy set in the 1950’s derived from its film of the same name.  When British Railways announce the closure of the Titfield to Mallingford branch line, it’s up to the locals to save it.  Cue the sabotage, physical comedy and slapstick…

This play was directed by David McCaddon, winner of the one act play festival in Congleton.  Having a train, a bus and various location on stage is no mean feat and I’m sure it must have been a logistical nightmare to direct.  Whilst the audience were given some pointers in the changing date and station names on the set, at times, it was confusing as to where the action was taking place.  There were times when the actors changed costumes to show a new day (and the text backed this up), yet the date on the board didn’t change.  The backdrop to the whole piece was the station platform of Titfield.  Whilst this piece of set looked brilliant – it was used in different scenes, during different locations which from an audience point of view, was confusing.  Actors stepped off the platform onto the railway lines – yet they weren’t, as they were in a different location?  I felt that it might have been prudent to use the platform, as only a platform, to ensure locationality.  For me, scene changes were too long and laborious.  I actually thought that they were supposed to be that long as part of the slapstick, but I don’t think it was the director’s intention.  At times during the dialogue, the trains would move by themselves and cast would have to step over the train to exit the stage.  Again, I thought that this might’ve been a directorial choice to enhance the humour, but I sadly suspect it wasn’t.  I personally would’ve used the two parts of the front stage as the Rev Weech’s house and the other side as the Pig and Whistle bar, which would’ve ensured that there were less scene changes.  Overall, I was expecting a rip-roaring belly laugh of a time, and sadly, I left having laughed on a few occasions at the clever writing.

The set was great.  It was nice to see everything in a 1950’s style and this piece was very authentic in both set and costumes.  I appreciate all of the hard work that went into set design and construction and I thought that Congleton Players did a great job in constructing a set with various locations, a train carriage and a train!  Despite this, scene changes were too long which stopped the flow of the piece.  The comedy could’ve been enhanced further if the scene changes were directed in a slap stick way to make the audience roar with laughter whilst the changes were happening. 

Costumes were lovely and authentic to the time period.  I particularly liked the costumes for Lady Chesterford.  Well done to the costume department for their hard work.  It didn’t go unnoticed.  I felt that some of the scene changes were so long because the cast had to change costumes.  Again, this could’ve been directed a little slicker in conjunction with the director and the costume department to ensure a quicker turn around between scenes.

Lighting was by Martin Lawton.  I thought the choice of colours used was good and that all parts of the stage were lit well throughout the action.  However, some of the colours used in the scene changes weren’t always the same which was strange.  I also felt that some of the lighting cues into the scenes were a little slow in being cued – however this might have been intentional, to help with the costume changes.

Sound was by James Swinnerton.  I thought that the sound was generally very good, and all sound cues were well cued.  To improve further, might I suggest that when the sound cue comes to the end, it could be quickly faded down, rather than cued off?  This would give it a smoother transition in to the scene.

Lady Edna Chesterford was brilliantly played by Cherryll Topham.  There was a lot of dialogue that Cherryll had to learn and she certainly pulled it off.  Clear diction, articulation and characterisation, Cherryll was a joy to watch and was suitably cast in this role.  It’s clear to see why Cherryll is a previous NODA winner.  Well done!

George Williams multirolled in the forms of Rev Weech and Mr Blakeworth.  I thought that George did well to convey the two different characters.  For me, George lacked a little projection and articulation but overall, I enjoyed his performance.

Simon Hoffman played the roles of Mr Valentine, Mr Clegg and Vernon Crump.  I loved the energy and commitment that Simon gave to each character.  It was clear which character was which, through the brilliant accents and physical embodiment.  Simon has a great ear for accents, good comic timing and is a good character actor.  Well done!

Joan Weech was played by Rosie Pearce.  She had a good rapport with the other actors on stage and good projection.  I felt that Rosie needed to annunciate a little more as her voice was quite low.  I liked Rosie’s scenes with Rory Mason – they bounced off each other well.

Rory Mason took on the roles of Harry Crump and Sgt. Wilson.  I loved Rory’s characterisation of both roles.  His accent as Harry Crump was excellent and was very well cast in the role.  Rory also had great comic timing as Sgt. Wilson, thanks to the clever writing.  I liked how subtle and dry Rory’s comedy was and it suited his characters well. 

Jen Brassington played the roles of Clifton and Miss Coggett.  I thought that Jen was a breath of fresh air when she was on stage and loved her interpretations of the roles.  It’s just a pity that Jen’s characters weren’t featured more in the writing; I look forward to seeing her again in the future.

Daniel Wood played the roles of Mr Ruddock and Dan Taylor.  Daniel has great comic timing and is a great character actor.  He had clear diction, articulation and projection and was a delight to watch.  Daniel’s commitment to character was appreciated by me and I loved the energy he brought to the stage.  It’s clear to see why he has been a previous NODA nominee.

Mrs Bottomley was suitably played by Dorothy Ramsbottom.  A small role, but nevertheless, a suitable and stable performance.

Overall, I enjoyed this play.  I thought that the acting was far superior to the staging and direction.  For me, there were various elements that could’ve been funnier; farcical even, which would’ve been easier to watch and appreciate.  Whilst most of the audience laughed in the right places, the humour was generally lost on me.  Visually, it was very good, and I appreciate all of the hard work that has gone into this piece of theatre, however, I left the theatre thinking that this play doesn’t really translate well from film to theatre.  I thank Congleton Players once again for their brilliant hospitality and wish them all the best for their next production ‘One Man, Two Governor’s’ in February.

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