Don't Dress for Dinner

by Marc Camoletti
adapted by Robin Hawdon

March   24, 25, 26,27   1999

Directed by Ralph Dawes

RD wrote "Comedy has always been a theatre form that I have enjoyed.  It has immediate impact and is highly coloured by audience reaction.

Marc Camoletti's high comedy leads form one comic crisis to crisis with the characters just managing to stop everything falling apart.  I had immense fun with the cast of Don't Dress for Dinner and they have developed into a team that worked well together.  The production has become a two-way collaboration between them and myself.

As a founder member of the Wick Theatre Company I am honoured to have this opportunity to direct in this 50th Anniversary Season.  My hope is that you will enjoy the play this evening as much as I have at every rehearsal."

In-House review by

Judith Berrill

This production featured a great central comic performance from Zoë Edden in her first Wick rôle as Suzette [or was it Suzanne], the cook.  Her reactions, timing and sense of farce were all carefully judged and very enjoyable to watch - the audience were completely behind her and the financial tips from the hapless Robert and Bernard were well earned.  All this with a reduced rehearsal period as Zoë came into the show at a late stage when Diane Robinson's leg was sadly confined to plaster.  Kevin Isaac as Bernard gave us some great Cleese-esque moments while displaying his full range of shirts and John Garland's head sank suitably further into his hands as Robert's entanglement in the plot thickened.  Claire Wiggins was entirely convincing as the model Suzanne [or was it Suzette], born to wear a Channel coat and not particularly comfortable with a saucepan in her hands.  Wife and mistress Jacqueline was played by Heather Richards and it was good to see Andrew Cregeen back on the Barn stage s the over protective, easily confused and loveable George.

The medium of farce is a fragile thing - a bit like keeping a ball in the air - any dropping of the ball leaves the whole cast scrabbling around under the metaphorical sofa looking for the ball to start the game again.  A few balls were dropped -m for example when Margaret Ockenden as prompt was not without work and the sometimes slow cueing caused some lumpy moments - but credit should go to those who worked very hard to get the game going again as quickly as possible.

The 'look' of the production was good.  The set, a convincing barn conversion complete with bits of timbering that gave it that genuinely 'knocked through' appearance.  The height of the door clearly been made not to fit George's impressive stature creating a great comic entrance for his torso.  Sometimes the sofa unfortunately cut off the action across the centre - particularly the scenes using the telephone.  Zoë's instant conversion kit outfit from demure to daring was achieved with a great deal of style and what sounded like a not inconsequential amount of velcro.  John cut a fine dash in some rather fetching silk PJ's though I must confess some personal disappointment that his parting was not in our favourite central position.

It was great to see the Barn brimming with people and to hear their favourable comments.  Congratulations and thanks to Ralph, his back stage, on stage and front stage crew.

Godspell

Conceived and originally directed by John-Michael Tebelak 
Music and new lyrics by Stephen Schwartz

June  23, 24, 25, 26  1999

Directed by Betty Dawes

BD wrote "Ever since I directed Godspell in St. Michael's and All Angels Church for the Council of Churches over a decade ago, I have wanted to present it again.  That production was enormously exciting and successful.  As the founder member of Wick, there couldn't have been a better time for me to do it and I am absolutely delighted to have the opportunity of directing Godspell as the final production in our wonderful 50th Season.

We have had a lot of pleasure preparing the show for you and I hope you enjoy the show with us and see why it holds such a special place in my heart.

Thank you very much for your continued support of the Wick shows which is very much appreciated and we look forward to entertaining you over the next 50 years."

In-House review by

Derek Ryder

The songs were well performed, some exceptionally so, with very secure support form the band.  The movement was well worked out and the dancing was performed with great energy and precision.  Congratulations must go to Betty for overall direction, as well as to Kati as musical director, Trudy as choreographer and Amanda for design.

The set, an adventure playground with an inner city feel, was entirely appropriate and effectively used.  'Being a little children' was accentuated with nods towards the "Magic Roundabout" and, briefly, the "Teletubbies", together with a general air of playfulness.

The acting out of the parables was inventive and amusing with the cast using a variety of accents in the vocalisation of the various characters - though I wondered just how many 'alreadys' we were going to get in the 'The Prodigal Son'!  I particularly liked the sheep and the goats.

Godspell is an ensemble piece where by definition everyone has to work for everyone else.  If cast members are not individually mentioned in this review it is not to belittle their contribution.  Everyone had their special moment and everyone worked well together to create an almost tangible company spirit.

I was a little unsure about the beginning.  I missed the link between the philosophers and the start of the action on the stage.  I didn't hear the words of the rap song either and I did think the mention of Euros was possibly an update too far!

Antony Muzzall as Jesus struck the right note when he emerged to ask John the Baptist for a 'wash'.  He somewhat strained at his opening number but had good presence and established the essential rapport with the group.  If they didn't always get the message, he was there to support and guide.  His talks with his Father, both on his mobile phone and, very differently, at Gethsemane, were handled well.

Adrian, as well as giving the show a secure start as John the Baptist, contributed dramatic energy as Judas and considerable physical energy in the dancing.  Adrian and Antony worked well together in 'All for the Best'.

Life is not all play, as we all know, and the darker, more dramatic moments needed to be brought out.  I think that this was achieved  - perhaps not quite as certainly, to my mind, as the sunnier side, but effectively enough.

When the cast took of their greasepaint, the mood changes.  'On the Willows' [with verses from psalm 137 - 'By the Waters of Babylon'] worked as well as always and the cast's goodbyes to Jesus were genuinely moving.  The dramatic chords at the Crucifixion were followed by a stillness - leaving the audience spellbound.  The the cast processed out in affirmation of faith, carrying the body of Jesus.

They came back to a standing ovation form an audience that demanded encores.  Suitably, we were given 'We Beseech Thee' an ensemble piece and dance that showed the cast at its best.  Godspell was well attended, well received and a successful venture into a genre I had not previously seen at the Wick but one we could venture into again with confidence.  I hope so.

Congratulations to all the may people involved on and off the stage.

In praise of Godspell [and Hannah in particular]

Thank you Faye Rebecca Dumbrill for taking the time to write;

I was really disappointed at the interval as I had to take my tired sister home but luckily I got back for the ending [strangely my sister is older than me].  When you took Jesus out I saw you put him down by the box office.

My mum wondered whether you were doing a Christmas pantomime and when.  Please write back especially the girl with the blonde bunches.

Lots of luck

Arcadia

by Tom Stoppard

 October  6, 7, 8, 9  1999

Directed by Bob Ryder

BR wrote "When Arcadia opened in 1993, an extremely rare thing happened - audiences and critics were at once convinced they were witnessing a new play which was going to rank among the classics of world theatre.  So far that judgment has held up, 'officially', with Arcadia shooting effortlessly into the pop charts of English and Drama syllabuses around the globe.

What makes it so special? Probably a combination of things.  there is an extraordinary range of ideas and 'movements' - the science of creation and the chaos of the natural world, the order of classicism and the inspired disorder of romanticism  -  just to be going on with.  But all this clever stuff is presented in perfect theatrical form, through great characters caught up in a fascinating story line - or two related story lines, as the events of the past and the present continually intertwine.  And then there is the sheer dexterity of the language and the comedy which Tom Stoppard uses to create both high entertainment and serious emotion.

And it's the element of emotion, perhaps, that puts Arcadia onto a new level of achievement among Tom Stoppard's works.  To enjoy Rosencrantz and Guilderstern Are Dead,  or Jumpers, or Travesties, it's not necessary to feel particularly involved in the feelings of the central characters.  But with Arcadia, we are drawn closely into caring about the future of Thomasina and Septimus, for example, and about Hannah's gradual piecing-together of the truth about their lost lives.  Stppard's play were once accused of being full of wit and short on 'heart'.  Arcadia has both, in plenty.  Along with his subsequent 1997 play The Invention of Love (about the poet and scholar A E Houseman) it sets a new high water mark."  

The following is a review of this production by Patrick Johnson

In-house review by

Patrick Johnson

When I first heard of the proposed production of Arcadia, of which I had heard rave reviews, I acquired a copy and read it through.  Now I have not acquired my mothers gift for the terse and worse, but my immediate reaction was 'hunh'!  Tom, you're too clever by half, you smarty pants, you!

I read the play at least three times more, with a little more comprehension seeping through each time, but I still found it full of problems.  With such dense writing I found it hard to keep track of who was saying what, and going back to check broke my hold on whatever argument was frying my brain.  In trying to absorb all the intellectual pyrotechnics I completely lost any sense of what was happening to these seriously intelligent people who wouldn't stop talking.  So I rather dismissed the play as a showy attempt to put several arcane textbooks on to the stage which had failed to breathe life into characters.

It was with a little surprise that I found myself succumbing to Rosemary's blandishments when she suggested that I should do a review of the production.  As you can imagine I was a little apprehensive as to how the evening would turn out, but let me say straight away that I enjoyed myself very much.  Listening to people putting across the ideas and watching the development of their characters made the play come alive in a  way I hadn't really expected.

I liked the uncluttered set.  It worked so well that I soon forgot about it which is what I think should happen.  Similarly the lighting and sound effects kept the places in the background.  The 'working light' effect for the scene changes was a good idea.  We didn't peer into the dark and wonder if someone would drop something or fall over in the dark.  But, once the actors took their places, I felt the lights should have come straight up and the play could have carried on without another blackout.  We knew they were ready and were impatient by the delay.

And the acting?  I believed in all the characters: nobody gave the impression of just saying lines and the interplay between the cast made for a presentation of real people living their loves before us.

The downside?  I had to work hard to hear what was being said by some of the cast, particularly when they were upstage.  It is difficult for the ear to adjust from one volume to another.  This is something that familiarity with the script can cover up but the audience doesn't have that advantage.  It also covers up the problems of pace.  If people race through their speeches it may not be noticed if you know the play but the poor audience when faced with a poorly projected gabble of words is left floundering.  For me, even with my slight knowledge of the play these problems of varying projection and pace detracted from what was otherwise a good production of a difficult play.

A Christmas Carol

by Charles Dickens

December  18, 19 [17.00hrs], 20, 21, 22  1999

Directed by Tony Brownings

 TB wrote "Charles Dickens was just 31 when he wrote A Christmas Carol, though already he had enjoyed huge popular success with 'The Pickwick Papers', 'Oliver Twist', 'Nicholas Nickleby' and 'The Old Curiosity Shop'.  He began writing it in October 1843 and had it on sale in the bookshops the week before Christmas - about the same length of time we have taken to rehearse this new adaptation for the stage!

Dickens actually wrote A Christmas Carol while working hard to produce the monthly episodes of 'Martin Chuzzlewit' for his magazine readership.  He once described how, in that busy autumn of 1843, he would walk the streets and alley-ways of London in the middle of the night, with his mind racing about the chapters he would write the following day.

What drove him to work so furiously on the book?  To begin with, he felt driven to attacks social injustice of child poverty and exploitation.  Just before he began the Carol, he had lectured in Manchester on the perils of 'Want' and 'Ignorance', which he then brought so vividly to life in the book.  But he was also driven to show the power of redemption - the chance to confront past memories and present truths, and to built a better future.  Through Scrooge, Dickens invites us all to embrace the universal values of friendship, family and the generosity of the human spirit.

I set about this new adaptation for the stage because I felt that many earlier versions had strayed a long way from the mood which Charles Dickens created, either watering down his tone or making it more sentimental than he intended.  By going back very closely to the dialogue which he wrote for his characters, I hope that we are now presenting a play which is much more faithful to the spirit of the book.

It has been enormous fun working with the large team of Wick members [and their children!] who have come together to create this production.  A Christmas Carol is not only a cracking good story, it should be a heart-warming, uplifting experience as well.  So we hoe that you enjoy this production and feel its cheer spreading into the festivities ahead.  A very merry Christmas to you all!"

In-house review by

George Porter

When the National Theatre presented the story two or three years ago they peopled the stage with bankers, tradesmen and half the population of London's East End.  Tony Brownings' production was quite beautifully adapted to the Barn Hall stage and the setting gave us a montage which had depth and interest, particularly with its trompe l'oeil effect of a sleeping city in winter.  The whole decor and costuming fitted into this austere view of a cold, hard time particularly for the Cratchits of the Victorian world.

The play in Tony Brownings' adaptation concentrated on the essence of the story of the Cratchit family, saved from squalor by a Scrooge redeemed through the visions of his ghastly life past, present and future.  The key to the impressive tone of this production was to restrain the over sentimentality that could come out of the situation and to present a Breughel type narration - something detailed and moving but not sloppy.

The costuming was excellent - in keeping with the grey tones of a cold winter city scene.  It really seemed like winter and the use of a most talented group of carol singers to set the scene with a delightful choice of 'Coventry' type carols sung 'acapello' led by Kati Szeless, was most fitting.

The play was not long but with its strong story and concise ordering by the Director, the whole play came over as a satisfying work of art in which the austerities of minimal props and mime really paid off.  One might have wanted more carols, more embellishments, but on reflection it might have diluted the impact of the present work of art.  Having commented on how apt the carol singing was, one ought not to forget the admirable duet sung by Scrooge's nephew's wife and her sister, Julie Le Manquais and Jane Richards.

The cast list is long and should be regarded as a general ensemble completing a pattern  However the central part of Scrooge was great achievement by David Goodger - from harsh skinflint to transformed sugar uncle - a truly great performance.  The same quality of acting encompassed the ghosts haunting Scrooge - David Creedon was a most striking Marley, as lucid as ever, and with some excellent light and sound effects.  Judith Berrill as the ghost of 'Christmas yet to come' was a compelling figure dominating the higher areas of the montage and John Barham as the dominating 'ghost of Christmas present' was impressive in bulk and voice.  The impact of the ghost scenes was a controlled tour de force by the four main characters.

All the Cratchit family were so authentic in their lowly abode - Bob Ryder, Margaret Pierce and Christopher Brownings as Tiny Tim were delightfully in the picture and their miming with other family members so aptly part of the whole picture.

The presentation of such a teeming slice of London life with some forty named parts doesn't permit naming all, as this is a team effort, and a few cameos by experienced performers can only just be mentioned in scanning the cast list - Margaret Ockenden, Kevin Isaac, John Garland and Rosemary Bouchy were all beautifully part of the whole picture.  Last but not least was excellent lighting and sound by Mike Medwayn and Simon Snelling.  Congratulations too to Tony Brownings and the large team which gave us a memorable evening - and even called up snow!

A final note - Front of House, backstage staff and set constructors are a special part of the team and a big thanks to them too.