Thriller of the Year

Thriller of the Year is definitely a Murder Mystery with a difference as it doesn’t depend on an actual murder for its suspense factor.  The star part in this production is a thriller writer, Gillian Howard, superbly played by Carol Clark.  She was seldom off the stage and held our attention at all times. She is a neurotic and self centred larger than life character who not only wants her own way in every respect, she is also convinced that someone is trying to kill her which isn’t surprising bearing in mind her behaviour. Her whole performance was outstanding especially when she performed with nothing but a telephone.  It was gripping.  Irene Knight, her publisher, was played by Julie Harper. She came over as a little stilted for a person of her standing in life but this may have been intentional to supply the contrast in characters.  Madge, the secretary, was played at just the right level by Sarah Johnson.  She didn’t have a great deal of dialogue in comparison with the amount of time she spent on stage but she maintained her personality throughout acting and re-acting to perfection.  Not an easy part to fill.  Next we had the doctor played by Helen Chewter.  She was what one would expect of a person of her calibre making little impression on the audience until the last scene when she came into her own with some really good acting.  The last person on the cast list was Elizabeth Toon as the mother-in-law.  She was an excellent foil for her impossible daughter-in-law.  This completed the players apart from three sets of voices off stage mainly on the other end of a great many telephone calls.  Congratulations to the sound department for their excellent timing.  The set was cleverly arranged to allow for good movement and the lighting, costumes and props all added to the atmosphere.  The direction was very well thought through ensuring that all of the five members of the cast were very different, portraying very varied personalities. Altogether a most enjoyable piece.

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