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Editorial – Not A Bad Start The David Beach Nominations Production Notes – Daisy.. What’s On in February/March Cinderella Trophy Reviews Bulletin Board Letters
FEBRUARY 2010 Charity no: 0184863
Fellowship Committee
Chair David Jenkins 01278 786501 [email protected]
Vice-chair Rod Hancox 01823 480369 [email protected]
Secretary Pat Sollis 01823 490750 [email protected]
Treasurer Jaqueline Roberts 01458 241374 [email protected]
Spotlight Philip de Glanville 01373 451680 [email protected]
Membership Joan Jarvis 01278 793726 [email protected]
Social Vacancy
Originals Vacancy
Training Di Dean 01458 250852 [email protected]
Phoebe Rees Anna Bowerman 01460 57857 [email protected]
Cinderella June Jenkins 01278 786501 [email protected]
David Beach Pam Price 01935 479633 [email protected]
Youth Liz Brown 01278 652687 [email protected]
Area Representatives
Mendip Alex Webb [email protected]
Sedgemoor David Jenkins 01278 786501 [email protected]
Sth Somerset (W) Polly Bray 01460 63503 [email protected]
Sth Somerset (E) Vacancy
Taunton Deane Ron Roberts 01458 241374 [email protected]
West Somerset Patience Lacy-Smith
01643 703929 [email protected]
Deadline for SPOTLIGHT: 21st of preceding month
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Editorial
Not a Bad Start If the ‘stats’ are anything to go by, then the new SFD website looks as though it is going to be a great success. You may be interested in seeing for yourself, if you are inclined towards this sort of thing and have time to waste… http://stats.somersetdrama.org.uk There have been over 400 unique visitors to the site since the launch on 31st December, and after the flurry of the first few days, the number of visits per day has settled down to an average of just under 25 – that’s over two visits per visitor. We’ve even had people finding the site from as far afield as Canada, Malaysia and Brazil, though I have to admit none of them stayed long. The interesting thing is that most visitors do give us much more than a cursory glance – in the first couple of weeks at least 50% were spending between 5-15 minutes looking at the site, which is very encouraging. Presumably most were SFD members, but we are aware that the number of people registering, in order to get access to
the Galleries etc, is increasing day by day and as word gets about we are very much hoping that this will go on rising. The most extraordinary thing though is that Google had recognised us within just three weeks – this is virtually unheard-of in the world of new websites apparently – and that people are now potentially finding the site with an amazing range of random keyphrases. My favourite so far is “wicked queen panto 2010”. OK, so there were nearly 8000 results and ours certainly wasn’t anywhere near the top of the list, but it is nice to know we were there somewhere. If however you type in Somerset and Drama we are up at the top of the first page, and the important thing for member groups is that Joe Public – your potential customer/future member - is beginning to do just that. We are hoping that more Club Contacts will now start visiting the website, make something of their Gallery (many have no pics at all and the majority have clearly not chosen the ones on display), arrange to tidy up the details on their Map Marker, and generally take some pride in their appearance on the website. It may be then that they will recommend it to their own members. The Forums are now up and running and will need to be used if they are to be of interest to everyone. Time to get a bit more involved and make the SFD website work for you!
The DAVID BEACH NOMINATIONS Here they are – the distillation of another year of joyful musical productions. Come and find out who wins what at the Awards Evening on Friday 19th March. See What’s On for details.
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Sound Clevedon LOC – Into The Woods Glastonbury & Street MCS - Annie Strode Productions – Fiddler on the Roof Wellington Operatic Soc –My Fair Lady Weston super Mare OS – Fiddler on the Roof
Effects Clevedon LOC – Into The Woods FCC & Merlin Theatre Co – West Side Story Milborne Port Opera – The Mikado
Props Clevedon LOC – Into The Woods CUDOS – Hello Dolly Glastonbury & Street MCS – Annie Strode Productions – Fiddler on the Roof Wellington Operatic Soc –My Fair Lady Wells Little Theatre – My Fair Lady Wells Little Theatre Youth – Seussical Yeovil AOS – High Society
Stage Management Clevedon OS - My Fair Lady CUDOS – Hello Dolly Frome AOS - The Full Monty Glastonbury & Street MCS - Annie Strode Productions – Fiddler on the Roof Wells Little Theatre – My Fair Lady Weston super Mare OS – South Pacific Weston super Mare OS – Fiddler on the Roof
Costumes Hired CUDOS – Hello Dolly Glastonbury & Street MCS – Annie Polden Productions – The Likes of Us Wells Little Theatre – My Fair Lady Weston super Mare OS – Fiddler on the Roof Yeovil AOS - The Gondoliers
Costumes Not Hired Alive Community Theatre -Seussical Benham Academy of Dance - Oliver Castaway Theatre Co – Peter Pan Clevedon LOC – Into The Woods Clevedon LOC Juniors - Copacabana Clevedon OS - My Fair Lady MATA – The Pirates of Penzance Wells Little Theatre Youth – Seussical
Creative Lighting Clevedon LOC – Into The Woods Polden Productions – The Likes of Us Strode Productions – Fiddler on the Roof Wells Little Theatre – My Fair Lady Weston super Mare OS – Fiddler on the Roof Yeovil Youth Theatre - Footloose
Set Construction - Not Hired Clevedon LOC – Into The Woods Clevedon LOC Juniors - Copacabana Clevedon OS - My Fair Lady CUDOS – Hello Dolly Polden Productions – The Likes of Us
Wells Little Theatre – My Fair Lady Wells Little Theatre Youth – Seussical
Creative Set - Hired Weston-super-Mare OS – South Pacific Yeovil AOS – The Gondoliers Yeovil Youth Theatre - Footloose
Youth Under 16 Elizabeth Bradley as Lola/Samantha Copacabana - Clevedon LOC Juniors Emily Symonds-Wilmott as Annie Annie – Glastonbury & Street MCS Georgia Wall as Cat Seussical – Wells Little Theatre Youth Jessica D’Arcy as Rusty Footloose – Yeovil Youth Theatre Olivia Kerton as JoJo Seussical – Wells Little Theatre Youth Penny Dyer as Gertrude Seussical – Wells Little Theatre Youth Poppy Rendell as Dinah High Society - Yeovil AOS
Youth Under 21 Harrison Treble as Tony/Stephen Cocacabana – Clevedon LOC Juniors James Browne as Barnaby Tucker Hello Dolly – Bridgwater AOS Joe Garratt as Fagin Oliver – Benham Dance Academy Naomi Prescott as Red Riding Hood Into The Woods – Clevedon LOC Niki Harris as Lucy Down Curtains – Alive Community Theatre Oliver Healey as Horton Seussical – Wells Little Theatre Youth Will Poulton as Ren Footloose – Yeovil Youth Theatre
Cameo Brian Harding as The Rabbi Fiddler on the Roof – Weston OS Brian Sands as Mr Fezziwig Scrooge – Bridgwater AOS
Garth Muton as Auctioneer The Likes of Us – Polden Productions Graeme Kelly as Green Eye of Little Yellow God The Good Old Days – Minehead Dramatic Soc Karl Edwards as Stanley Hello Dolly – CUDOS Martin Coleman as Zoltan Karpathy My Fair Lady – Clevedon OS Richard Hooper as Bullfrog Honk! – Cary Amateur Theatrical Society
Female in a Supporting Role Alison Thomas as Mrs Higgins My Fair Lady – Wellington Operatic Society Elaine Hayne as Yente Fiddler on the Roof – Strode Productions Jo Turley as Rose The Likes of Us – Polden Productions Kara Horler as Anita West Side Story – FCC & Merlin Theatre Co Karen Pankhurst as Vi Moore Footloose – Yeovil Youth Theatre Lynda Prescott as Baker’s Wife Into The Woods – Clevedon LOC Sarah Elliott as Mrs Molloy Hello Dolly - CUDOS Sheila Street as Christmas Past Scrooge – Bridgwater AOS Victoria May as Georgie The Full Monty – Frome AOS
Male in a Supporting Role Christian Lockyer as Motel Fiddler on the Roof – Strode Productions Darren Oxman as Cornelius Hello Dolly – Bridgwater AOS Greg Groves as Horace Vandergelder Hello Dolly - CUDOS Mark Wall as Doolittle My Fair Lady – Wells Little Theatre Matt Nixon as Willard Footloose – Yeovil Youth Theatre Paul Yates as Frederic Pirates of Penzance - MATA
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Shaun Driver as Rooster Annie – Glastonbury & Street MCS Terry Francis as The Duke The Gondoliers - Yeovil AOS
Female Performance Anna Friend as Asfaleia Good Gods – Wells Little Theatre Annie Brock as Eliza Doolittle My Fair lady – Clevedon OS Beverley Gregory as Nellie Forbush South Pacific – Weston Super Mare OS Cherry Lewis as Golde Fiddler on the Roof - Strode Productions Jessie Cooper as Yum-Yum The Mikado – Milborne Port Opera Julie Ashton as Witch Into The Woods – Clevedon LOC Kate Lynch as Eliza Doolittle My Fair Lady – Wells Little Theatre Kate Newberry as Maria West Side Story – FCC & Merlin Theatre Co Sarah Jane Cross as Mabel The Pirates of Penzance - MATA
Male Performance
Alan Coles as Scrooge Scrooge – Bridgwater AOS Barry Squance as Warbucks Annie – Glastonbury & Street MCS Craig Bennett as The Baker Into The Woods – Clevedon lOC Dennis Barwell as Tevye Fiddler on the Roof – Strode Productions Dylan Cheasley as Emile De Becque South Pacific – Weston Super Mare OS Geoff Redstone as Professor Higgins My Fair Lady – Wellington OS James Newton as Dexter High Society – Yeovil AOS Jeff Prescott as Professor Higgins My Fair Lady – Clevedon LOC Kevin Withers as Dave Bukatinsky
The Full Monty – Frome AOS
Richard Wright as Professor Higgins My Fair Lady – Wells Little Theatre Robbie Burns as Tevye
Fiddler on the Roof – Weston OS Robert Reid as Ugly
Honk! – Cary Amateur Theatrical Society
Show Stopper CUDOS – Hello Dolly The Waiter’s Gallop Frome AOS – The Full Monty ‘You Walk With Me’ (Malcolm & Ethan) FCC & Merlin Theatre Co – West Side Story ‘Gee officer Krupke’ Glastonbury & Street MCS - Annie ‘Easy Street’ Strode Productions – Fiddler on the Roof ‘Sabbath Prayer’ Weston Super Mare OS – South Pacific ‘Dames’ Yeovil AOS – The Gondoliers ‘Dance the Chachucha
Chorus Clevedon OS – My Fair Lady FCC & Merlin Theatre Co –West Side Story Polden Productions – The Likes of Us Wells Little Theatre Youth - Seussical Weston Super Mare OS – South Pacific Yeovil AOS – The Gondoliers
Challenge Trophy Alive Community Theatre - Seussical Clevedon LOC – Into The Woods Clevedon OS – My Fair Lady Frome AOS – The Full Monty Wellington OS – My Fair Lady Wells Little Theatre – My Fair Lady Wells Little Theatre Youth – SeussicaL
Best Youth Production Clevedon LOC Juniors - Copacabana FCC & Merlin Theatre Co – West Side Story Wells Little Theatre Youth – SeussicaL Yeovil Youth Theatre - Footloose
Small Venue Trophy Alive Community Theatre - Seussical Clevedon OS – My Fair Lady CUDOS – Hello Dolly Polden Productions – The Likes of Us Wellington OS – My Fair Lady Wells Little Theatre – My Fair Lady Wells Little Theatre – My Fair Lady Wells Little Theatre Youth – SeussicaL
Choreography Alan Spencer – The Gondoliers Yeovil AOS Carol Applegate – The Likes of Us Polden Productions Emma Duffill – South Pacific Weston Super Mare OS Jill Wigham – West Side Story FCC & Merlin Theatre Co Judy Lye-Forster – West Side Story Yeovil Youth Theatre Kirsty-Jane Dobson – Fiddler on the Roof Strode Productions Sarah Neale - Seussical Alive Community Theatre Sheila Driver - Annie Glastonbury & Street MCS Silvey Webber - Curtains Alive Community Theatre
Musical Direction Andrew Nicholls – West Side Story FCC & Merlin Theatre Co Barry Smith – My Fair Lady Clevedon OS Helen Green - Footloose Yeovil Youth Theatre
Hilary Wickham – My Fair Lady Wellington OS John Johnson – South Pacific Weston Super Mare OS Lynne Merrifield – The Gondoliers Yeovil AOS Lynne Merrifield – Annie Glastonbury & Street MCS Paul Doolan – The Pirates of Penzance MATA Sheila Ross – Fiddler on the Roof Strode Productions Sue Marsh – Into The Woods Clevedon LOC Tony Pomeroy - Scrooge Bridgwater AOS
Direction Alan Spencer – The Gondoliers Yeovil AOS Brian Epps - Annie Glastonbury & Street MCS Claudia Pepler – West Side Story FCC & Merlin Theatre Co Jeff Prescott – My Fair Lady Clevedon OS Lois Harbinson – My Fair Lady Wells Little Theatre Lynda Prescott - Copacabana Clevedon LOC Juniors
Mike Linham – fiddler on the Roof Strode Productions
Best Musical Clevedon LOC – Into The Woods
Clevedon LOC –My Fair Lady
Glastonbury & Street MCS – Annie Strode Productions – Fiddler on the Roof
Wells Little Theatre – My Fair Lady
Yeovil AOS – The Gondoliers
Congratulations to everyone… See you all at the Awards!
DAISY PULLS IT OFF … on two Continents! Director Michael Gilbert reports:
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9 The whole way of life at school has changed so dramatically since the 1920s that the starting point had almost to be how to behave rather than how to act.
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PRODUCTION NOTES Way back in the Spring, I accepted the director’s role for Taunton Thespians’ autumn 2009 production – Denise Deegan’s Daisy Pulls It Off. This wasn’t without a certain amount of disquiet, as my late father, Dan, had directed the show years ago back in Northern Ireland. I never saw the production, but still didn’t want to tread in the old man’s footsteps, so to speak. However, I like challenges, so I accepted. Being in the middle of the AETF rounds with Two Gentlemen of Soho meant that Daisy went on the back burner for a while, though.
Come July, with Thespians’ Summer Tour out of the way and Two Gents resting for a while, I bent my mind to how to cast and set the show. One thing seemed critical, and that was to match the author’s intent and have the schoolgirls played by actresses in their twenties, so far as that was possible. Lots of people blanched at this; in common with many (most?) societies, our age profile tends towards the more mature female. Many successful productions have, apparently, been staged with the girls played by 40-something actresses. I couldn’t see that working, personally. However, I persevered, and held four auditions across August to give the widest possible opportunity for people to get along, using both the local paper and the Internet to spread the word.
This worked very well, and we were able to cast for the Tacchi-Morris run straight from auditions. The Gambia trip, for the week following, was also provisionally cast, albeit with a couple of major changes.
In the midst of all this I was firming up my concept of the show. According to the script, it’s a play being performed by the Upper Fourth for a Parents’ Evening. Most productions seem to have followed the original and built a stairs with a balcony to represent the school hall, and this was my first idea. On a visit to the wonderful Fagin’s Antiques (in the old Whiteways Cider buildings, alongside the M5. Turn off at Cullompton and follow the old Exeter road. Will hire stuff for shows, with the charge being 1 bottle of Bollinger. A true Aladdin’s cave) I had seen an amazing staircase, which fitted my original idea. Talking this over with more rational souls, mainly Dave Goodall, I was persuaded that this was an insane idea. Back to the drawing board, therefore, and off it came the idea of a show created with the help of staff, including a rather radical Drama teacher and the Art and Woodwork departments. Out of this came the idea of blocks of two sizes, which would both give me three levels and be usable as desks, beds and chairs. And a corridor and clifftop...
The reduction of the set dressing to a minimum in a show with multiple scenes struck me as critical. One could have front of tabs scenes for scene changes, but that didn’t feel right. Everything in the open, that was the way to do it. To complete the image, blown-up images from period girls’ comics were drawn onto bedsheets and hung against the backcloth. One of the key moments in the show, one of the key elements of the described set, is a portrait, and this can’t exist in this particular design. There is, however, a specific reference to a green glowing comet, and I had hoped the lighting might have been able to create this, and to track it down to then trigger the revelation of the treasure. Sadly, we never achieved this effect
Having got the cast together, the first job was to get them into the idea of what we were going to do. The works of Angela Brazil are totally outside the experience of the generation of girls I had in the cast. The whole way of life at school has changed so dramatically since the 1920s that the starting point had almost to be how to behave rather than how to act. Don’t cross your legs, feet together, stand up straight, don’t look at the teachers, stand up when you’re spoken to, silence when a teacher enters the room... Getting these basics in place went a
long way towards ensuring that one of the key elements of the comedy of the piece was maintained. Every line has to be delivered dead straight in Daisy. The minute the cast start sending up the characters, the humour is either lost or changes to something much broader – and much less funny. Thankfully, I had a wonderful and talented cast, all of whom grasped and created
their characters pretty well perfectly.
Abi Vickery as Daisy worked like a Trojan in one of the biggest roles I know of for a young actress, never losing sight of who she was, Katherine Winter’s Trixie grabbed the audience’s attention from the first “Jubilate!”, Rhian Pugh and Charlotte Briggs as the baddies, Sybil and Monica, were the easiest piece of casting I have ever had to do, delivering the
characters right from the first read-through, Harriet Brine’s height and diffidence made her a very believable head girl, with Chloe Stepney’s portrayal of her adoring sporty chum Alice being a perfect foil. Stepping back from the girls for a moment to look at the staff, our Headmistress, Alison Jenkinson, did exactly what I’d hoped. I keep seeing Ali cast as a juve lead, but figured she’d be ideal for the role of the young Miss Gibson, and I wasn’t disappointed at all. Complementing her were Charlie Dorr as the enigmatic Russian Mr Scoblowski and Karen Kerslake as the firm but fair Miss
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And then we went to Africa. Just like that. Well, nearly…
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Granville, both running their classes with undeniable authority, and Caroline Vaughan who gave me both the ditsy Mademoiselle and the slightly exotic maternity of Daisy’s Mother. In the smaller roles, Stuart Lyddon transformed wonderfully from the silent and yokelly Mr Thompson into the slightly strange Sir David, and Bethanie Winter, Steph Grafton and Olivia Gentile rounded out the named cast very nicely. But more of the last three in a minute. Unspeaking but essential, Angela Widgery gave us live piano as the Music Teacher.
So that was the Tacchi-Morris cast. As you may be aware, the week after we put the show on at the TM, we took it to Gambia. The opportunity to do this landed on us in August, and the decision to take it up provoked a lot of discussion within the society, some of it a lot more acrimonious than it needed to be. However, that aside, the Committee took the decision that we ought to accept the offer. There were challenges, of course, not least being Abi’s inability to come with us, so we immediately had to have an understudy for Daisy. In the end, we lost not just Daisy from our original cast but Miss Gibson, Alice, Sybil and Monica. The last was the most traumatic, as Charlotte found the evening before we were due to fly that she couldn’t take the leave she thought she had. I hope
never again to have to recast a show at 7pm, 12 hours before leaving the country; apart from anything else, you can’t just call someone, as they have to have a passport and jabs...
So, I had to recast. To bulk out the crowd scenes, I already had a couple of understudies, Imy Papworth and
Katherine Stone, who picked up Sybil and Alice, respectively. Rebecca Livermore, who’d moved up to London from Taunton, came back because her mother saw the piece in the Gazette and took on Miss Gibson. My last minute recasting saw Olivia Gentile taking on Monica and Steph Grafton merging all the other pupils into one. Last, but by no means least, Bethanie Winter
took the role of Daisy, which I might well have cast her as originally had Abi not auditioned.
. A long coach trip to Gatwick and a long flight took us from the grey November of Taunton to the heat of the tropics. First stop, as it should be, was the Theatre. This was in the Alliance Franco-Gambienne, and was an open auditorium, with lighting box at the back and a good sized stage. Excellent sight lines and a lovely acoustic were immediately obvious (the latter being much better than the Tacchi-Morris, where the steeply raked auditorium is very unforgiving). Then on to our digs, five minutes down the road at a Catholic hostel. I could now start a bit of a
travelogue, but this isn’t the place; on with the show.
With a major recast having had to happen, and the show needing to go up on Friday, we needed to do some fairly intense rehearsal. We were now at Wednesday. So we rehearsed, all day, in the sun. Great for the girls who could relax and sunbathe, but the poor director needs to keep moving. This director wants to see the show from the front and the back, so kept running up and down the auditorium. Very tiring. The advantage in being away from home and work, of course, meant we had the luxury of rehearsing solidly all day, rather than having to start concentrating after a day’s slog in the office or wherever. And rehearse all day – with a break for lunch – we did, on Wednesday and Thursday. On Friday we stopped at lunchtime and went to the beach; the cast deserved a break before the show, and it had come together so well. So off we went, and everyone had a great time and relaxed thoroughly. Apart from me; while standing in the sea. the running up and down caught up with me, and I got excruciating cramp in both calves.
And so to the first night. Would a play about an English girls’ public school in the 1920s work in Gambia in 2009? Would people get the jokes? Would the humour translate? I am immensely relieved to say that the answer is ‘yes’ to all those questions. A slightly back-handed compliment from the British High Commissioner, who “didn’t expect ever to see something like that in Gambia”, but the feedback from the locals, as opposed to expats, was great. On the Saturday night, a concert by a local singer was introduced by her
former headmistress; “Just like St Joseph’s” she said. Whatever else the English have given the world, the stereotype of the girls’ boarding school created by Angela Brazil, Elinor M Brent-Dyer and Enid Blyton is out there.
Before finishing, I need to thank the backstage people at both venues, and it’s hard for the Gambian end, because I only met the guy who built the boxes once and didn’t get his name, but the job he did and the job that Matt Webber and Mark Dawson did in the UK were
both great. Jane Burt and Amy Parker on props, Cynthia Jones as prompt, Keith Gliddon on the desk and Laura Richmond on sound all delivered exactly what was needed at the Tacchi-Morris. Nicola Dawson marshalled them all and the black gang (not in black, but costumed as “members of staff”). In Africa, Jacqueline Roberts was prompt and sound, and we did without a DSM – the director running to the lighting box to tell Wole the lighting guy when a change was needed was the nearest we got. And finally, thanks to Ron Roberts for organising the logistics of the trip (and for providing me with liquid sustenance when most needed) and to Bruce Farr for having the idea, asking us to do it and putting up the money. It was, without doubt, the most amazing theatrical experience of my life. Would I do it again? You bet your sweet life.
MG I had hoped to publish pics of this production which were apparently on Facebook but seem to have disappeared! Perhaps TT will kindly put them on their Gallery… Ed
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February 1st-6th THE VERTICAL HOUR by David Hare The Swan Theatre Company Swan Theatre, Yeovil at 7.45pm Hare’s play, written in 2008, is a fast-paced gritty confrontation between two ultimately irreconcilable ideas in which he illustrates how life has subtly changed for so many people in the West. The perfect antidote to all those pantomimes! Directed by Ian White BOX OFFICE 01935 845946 Phoebe Rees entry
February 4th–6th JACK & THE BEANSTALK by Chris de Vere Hunt & Tim Nixon Porlock Pantomime & Drama Society Porlock Village Hall at 7.30pm Saturday matinee at 2.30pm Daydreamer Jack must climb the beanstalk to save the village from the giant, Max Girth, and win Princess Purdey’s hand, before the wicked Fleshcreep throws the Trotts out of their cottage. Directed by Paul Gibbs BOX OFFICE 01643 862337 Cinderella Trophy entry
February 5th–6th JAMES & THE GIANT PEACH by Roald Dahl Shipham Players Shipham Village Hall at 7.30pm Saturday matinee at 3.30pm Join James and his new-found insect friends as they embark on an extraordinary adventure which takes them halfway around the world. Will James survive the journey and find the new life he longs for? Directed by Daniel Jeffery BOX OFFICE 01934 843606
February 9th–13th KING ARTHUR by Paul Reakes Cloverleaf Productions Coombe St Nicholas Village Hall at 7.30 Saturday matinee at 2.30pm Sat evening at 6.30pm King Arthur is challenged by the evil Morgana and, after many adventures, manages to defeat her with help from all his friends. Directed by Ros Roderigo BOX OFFICE 01460 67070 Cinderella Trophy entry
February 16th–20th DRACULA THE PANTO by Jon Chilcot C.A.R.D.S Ruishton Village Hall at 7.30pm Saturday matinee at 2pm Will Dracula get the 'bodies' for his next experiment? Or will Mrs Braveheart foil him and get her hands on Dracula's elixir potion? Come and join us for a night of spooky fun. Directed by Robert Chilcot BOX OFFICE 01823 442115 Cinderella Trophy entry
February 17th–20th PUSS IN BOOTS by Paul Alexander Bradford Players Bradford on Tone Village Hall at 7.30pm Friday/Saturday matinee at 2.30pm The traditional story brought up to date with ‘An Alternative Fairy’, a bewitched princess, a resourceful lad and a remarkable cat. Fun for all the family. Directed by Jane Emmott BOX OFFICE 07880 852202 Cinderella Trophy entry
February 19th–20th SLEEPING BEAUTY by Richard Lovelock WADS Wincanton Memorial Hall at 7.30pm Saturday matinee at 2.30pm The classic tale of the beautiful princess Sleeping Beauty for no prince can be found. Can Fairy Racheal find the one true love she needs before time runs out? Directed by Jayne Bentley BOX OFFICE 01963 824863 Cinderella Trophy entry
March 5th–6th THE KING’S NEW CLOTHES by Peter Mitcheson, June Stevens & Annette Ward Chardstock Amateur Dramatic Society Chardstock Community Hall at 7.30pm Saturday matinee at 3pm Sir Ivor Darkside and his dim assistants Simply, Park and Ryde trick the King into exchanging his daughter for invisible “Magic Clothes”. Directed by John Williamson BOX OFFICE 01460 221067 Cinderella Trophy entry March 8th-13th COLD COMFORT FARM by Paul Doust Taunton Thespians Tacchi Morris Arts Centre at 7.30pm Saturday matinee at 2pm A wonderfully funny, tongue-in-cheek comedy based on the classic novel by Stella Gibbons. Sophisticated Flora Poste takes on her crude rural relatives. Directed by Jane Burt BOX OFFICE 01935 845946 Phoebe Rees entry SFD Concessions
Friday March 19th
THE DAVID BEACH AWARDS EVENING
7 for 7.30pm, Haselbury Mill This event, to be held at the magnificent Tithe Barn, is the culmination of the 2009 David Beach Competition for Musicals and will be a glittering evening where all the twenty-five winners will be presented with their trophies.
Tickets from your Club Secretary or from Pam Price on 01935 479633
Weekend 27th/28th March
COUNTY DRAMA FESTIVAL King;s College Theatre South Street, Taunton One Act plays competing for the honourof representing Somerset in the next round of The All England Theatre Festival.
Adjudicated by Jane Levan More info: Ron Roberts 01458 241374
WHAT’S ON
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Cinderella Trophy Reviews More reviews of the current panto season from Moderator Ron Roberts:
Strode Productions December 28th Cinderella by Peter Denyer
It is always a pleasure to be presented with a well-designed programme and, this time, an additional joy to see the musical numbers listed in it. There was then a sad start to the evening, however, to read that the Street Theatre staff had decided not to offer space for this panto group in 2010. This thirty-ninth Strode panto was to be their last in this, their traditional venue. Sadness evaporated on entry into the auditorium, above us was a bulb-surrounded, lit-up Cinderella sign – the sort of Strode attention to detail that added ‘glitz’ and undoubtedly delighted all in the audience. Director Bill Wych knows how to make an impact. The main tabs drew to show two ‘snowmen’ on stage as part of the
rousing opened number Winter Wonderland during which ‘snow’ fell in the auditorium. Traditional chaos was created twice: the Ugly Sisters entered through the auditorium, loudly greeting friends and strangers alike, and their subsequent chase of Dandini around the aisles ensured that nobody slept! It shows a sophisticated touch to start the musical introduction to a song under the lead-in dialogue and we had two examples, the first of them too loud, but the idea was good! The most traditional of transformation scenes is, of course, Cinders into her ball-gown and Bill’s concept of whirling dancers to hide the switch was a new ‘take’ on it. Actors with personal microphones do not need to project to the back row – new technology begs new skills! Scripts are not sacrosanct but a working template and this one needed contradiction to prevent the principals from embracing. We all loved the screen-projected image onto a screen that, when removed, revealed that it had mirrored the sparkly coach. Impacts galore. All panto-goers are predisposed to warm to Cinderella and Poppy Lopez made an instant conquest with her natural grace, good diction and that glorious, winning smile. Principal Boy Daniel Nixon as Prince Charming and Hannah Brown as Dandini were well-matched for confident delivery and competent acting, though one of them was singing in English, one in American. Linkman Buttons essentially needs the quality of being likeable and John Turner was certainly that, working his audience with
confidence. Ugly Sisters are traditionally very brash: Steve Lukins’ Grizella and Len Swales’ Mona won on that count, both also being very confident. We felt sorry for the henpecked Baron, a solid, supporting performance by George Steer. Villain Wendy Linham scared children of all ages with her piercing voice and imperious gestures. Good pantomime ensures a total contrast between the good and evil and here was Fairy Godmother Jo Gray adding stage presence to sweet goodness, her couplets being both measured and well pointed. Chamberlain Dave Bates was suitably loud. The ‘glitz’ lasted past the end of the show with those traditional Strode party poppers firing off and, as usual, catching us all by surprise! Doubtless the tradition will transfer readily to the Meyer Theatre, Millfield School and the fortieth panto will see the start of a new and hopefully successful history. All of the traditional audience ought to attend and find out, because Strode Productions deserve their support.
Frome Operatic Society December 29th Snow White by Alan P Frayne
This was the third Snow White that we have seen this year out of only six pantos! It was the second Snow White (in two nights!) using a House Number contest between When The Saints Go Marching In and She’ll Be Coming Round The Mountain. It was the first
Snow White that we have seen in the Memorial Hall, though not the first time that we have enjoyed a FAOS panto, because we adjudicated somewhen! Andrew Carpenter got so many things right. Flashbangs and white spot at stage right for goodie, ditto and red for baddie at stage left. The entire cast SMILING throughout the evening. Stage pictures filled out fittingly as in five, decorative, senior dancers attending the linkman during his early audience-grab. Simple control gestures producing swift and well-co-ordinated chorus response – that’s rehearsal to a ‘t’. Chaos chases through the auditorium. The entrance of the dwarfs (late in the script) was through the auditorium, deliberately singing out of tune (because subsequently harmonious) – terrific effect! Carers standing unobtrusively by the stage steps for dwarfs or House Number kids passing up or down. There were some non-trad moments, however: FairyQ originally appeared from centre tabs (ouch) and she and the villain were allowed to swap Stage Right and Left many times – tut! The script-altered walkdown was simply brilliant. All principals appeared as pop-star persona, singing appropriate numbers whilst taking their bow – Principals Boy and Girl having ‘changed’ sex! Our Snow White was Nicole Wooldridge, a natural actress with excellent delivery and a superb songstress. Principal Boy was Sophie Rozycka, whose Prince Ferdinand had professional delivery, a hero’s supreme confidence, masculine strut and a very audible thigh-slap. We enjoyed pretending to hate Joanne
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Plenty’s Villain Queen Avarice, a very positive character with excellent gesture. Villainy was ably supported by Andy Towse’s Slurp, somewhat Quasimodo but an instant, total character. Ross Toten’s Merlin was a Mirror with excellent projection, but then stepped out of pretence to perform rock and roll with enthusiasm and considerable energy. The comedy duo were fast-speaking Dame Edna Bucket by Humphrey Barnes and Davey Evans as linkman Chuckles, both with music hall attack as singers. Brokers Men Simon Joyce and Tom Carpenter were a constant joy. The former as Justice Quill had good timing and a comic walk. The latter as Scribbles the Secretary is a natural born comedian reminding one of a young Lee Evans. Fairy Good Fortune was given a measured, actor’s delivery by Lou Knight who has considerable stage presence. The dwarfs were all juniors, all word perfect, perfectly rehearsed in movement and action and ‘con brio’ singers to boot! We saw three Snow Whites on stage that night. One was traditionally dressed a la Disney’s original film and on stage all night, albeit with her dress dramatically changed for the walkdown. The other two were mini-Snow-Whites on stage for the House Number, identically dressed by some local emporium! Three Snow White pantos so far – and three Snow Whites this night! Joyful abundance.
Minehead Panto People January 7th Cinderella by Alan P Frayn
That night, “snow lay deep and crisp and even” over Somerset. The Beeb forecast very low temperatures. Police were warning us not to travel “unless it’s vital”. Should we go? No option, really, because difficult to shift other things planned that week, the Road Transport people had promised us they would grit the main roads early evening and, finally, we were expected! “We’ll go early”, we said and 6pm found us parked outside the theatre door. We walked 200 yards through very cold air for a very hot curry at Witherspoons followed by a very warm welcome at the Regal. This very funny script was served well by director Janet Costello and her cast and team. Examples follow! It was a brave decision to go for a humorous Fairy Queen but it worked. Chorus boys bearing baggage and the Ugly Sisters came through the auditorium, albeit quietly: we could have stood a bit of chaos! During the hunting scene, amusing diversions of hobby-horsed Sisters and Baroness chasing the fox through the scattered chorus. Griselda carrying off the ‘butch’ guard assigned to arrest her – over her shoulder! The kids loved it. The odd thigh-slap opportunity was overlooked but that’s a minor quibble. Non-scripted detail abounded, such as the half hoops produced to form an arch for the wedded principals. All the linking action had conviction and fluidity.
This pantomime exploded onto the stage in the guise of a Fairy shaking with giggles at her powers to get things right: Moira Douglas was a bouncy Greek Chorus throughout, a mega-communicator filling the theatre with laughter, and incidentally, singing well too! Penny Longhurst was a delightful Cinderella, a joy to watch that expressive face and hear the clear delivery, a winsome heroine. Her Prince Charming was straight-backed Kirsty Allen, every inch the hero and well matched both physically and in dress with Dandini, played by Sarah-Jane Date. Lead part and choreographer, versatile Sarah on stage had good posture and a constant, lively attention to all that was going on around her, an actress clearly enjoying herself. James Scott got Buttons very right by acting a gauche performance and combining it with that great and infectious smile. Ugly Sisters are obnoxious by tradition and Paul Yates as Gertrude and Peter Thompson as Grizelda were strapping versions of ‘smiling death’ with total confidence, music hall attack at a song and not bad hoofers either. Mum Baroness was Kim Hughes, Barbara-Windsor-bubbly with good comic timing of a line. Paul Walker convincingly played a slightly bewildered Baron, clever. Broker’s Men Darren MacKenzie and Josh Witchard were very relaxed on stage, easily confident. Colin Tennant was comically pompus as all Chamberlains are and Hagan the Horse had taught Julia Brett and Merissa Kendall to dance, skip and run quite well!
That night, the theatre was not all that warm but the warmth of the show had more than compensated for that. En route home the temperature dropped to minus double figures at times but, despite frequent brake checks, no black ice. We were glad to reach our warm house – and glad we went! We enjoyed it.
CUDOS January 22nd Goldilocks & The Three Bears by Traster, Lovesy and Clark
Whatever pantomime that we go to, we believe in generously supporting the raffle, a sort of ‘quid pro quo’ for the generous and universal offer of interval refreshments. We are fond of visiting the Crewkerne panto, pure nostalgia because it was our first ever adjudicator appointment. Unforgettable because of the embarrassment of winning the first raffle prize. It was an enormous basket of goodies and, as was the practice then, having to go to the front to collect it and nurse it during the performance. Nobody shouted “fix”, thank Heavens! Director John Perry must have enjoyed working on this clever and witty script. Two instances of good writing were a sustained and humorous play on wood quips given to the Brokers Men as woodsmen Choppit and Splinter and a well-worked ‘wolf’ variation on the ghost gag involving most of the principals – and a new ending. The pace was suitably rustic at times but that allowed some instances of good acting and THE safest and most gentle sword-fight ever,
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cleverly done to strobe effect. The commitment of the enthusiastic chorus is always a feature of this panto and tuneful as they were and thus unable to laugh for joy, they could have smiled more - we did! The reliable Diana English as Principal Boy TomTom had attack and masculinity. The ambling, quiet confidence of this PB engaged the audience on the side of goodness and light very easily. Alex McCallum showed her acting versatility by switching from last year’s PB to be Goldilocks, a winsomely straight PG with a sweet voice and a radiant smile. The Romantic Duet was a harmonious joy. The normally energetic Greg Groves was restrained by having his arm in a medical sling - poor Dame Auntie Septic! He didn’t ‘play’ on it, though and was word perfect. Leonie Dash dashed about (sorry, couldn’t resist) as Linkman Ray, giving a believable impression of a none-too-bright teenager. The Brokers Men were different! Here was a gentle, country-style approach to life that was seductive. Kerry Peters was the exasperated one and Miles Browning her lugubrious foil; they bounced off each other well - verbally that is. Opposing that lot were the bees and wasp wearing riveting costumes and make-up. Flying highest was Amanda Perry as villain Queen Bee with great comedy timing, sustained aggression and stage presence. Her flying column were Kerry Peters, Miles Browning, Diana English and Zac Dyer as
Penelobee, Buzzbee, Barnabee and Kevin the Wasp, all of them with good movement and clear delivery. Shambling happily into this came the likeable Bear family. Daddy Peter Drury was well-modulated, well-padded and stage-confident. Mummy-the-comforter was Jackie Dyer with the bright smile that lit up the stage and Claire Lafford a lively Baby Bear equipped with the biggest dummy ever seen. There was a gang of other bears too, including Paddington. Nobody need walk up to collect raffle prizes at Crewkerne these days. It’s more subtle since the draw is made and the winning numbers announced at the end of the interval. Prizes are available for collection on departure. We didn’t win – that is other than being well entertained.
Nunney Players January 23rd Pinocchio An original script by Frazer Pearce and Judith Beresford
In the programme was the story of ‘the original Pine Archie’, a marionette made in Nunney in the early 1880s by a local carpenter. It was stolen by a travelling entertainer but the carpenter gave chase through Somerset and Gloucestershire until he caught up with the thief. To destroy the evidence, Pine Archie was thrown onto a fire but rescued by an Italian who happened to be passing. He returned home with the model and the story of the chase, overheard by one
Carlo Collodi who published it as Pinocchio. This Nunney runaway story is a spoof, of course, the clue being in the Italian rescuer’s name: Signor Macaroni! Directors Bryony Brook and Meryl Cousins had a lot of fun with this original script based on Collodi’s tale and invested the village hall with pantomime tricks and pure magic. Everyone was involved! A ‘coach’ was assembled before our eyes out of rostra and the wheels turned in unison for a journey. Toys on shop shelves jigged to music but the entire cast on stage ‘froze’ completely whenever Mum did her Greek Chorus bit. Chaos was served by auditorium chases and characters chatting in amongst the audience; fascination was caused by the believable moves of waist-high marionettes strapped to blacked-out handlers in UV light. Non-stop entertainment. Our ‘Pine Archie’ was Amber Brook, a totally believable performance with excellent, wooden, ‘stringed’ movement and an equally excellent squeaky, wooden voice. His smile was so fixed that it was seemingly painted onto wood. An hour or so later, magic was imposed on the bits of wood and we had a ‘boy’ with an un-squeaky voice, selective smiles and fluid movement. All this from a ten-year-old! Colin Cross as Toni Gepetto moved and spoke like an old man, credibly overjoyed at creating a craved-for son, good acting. Matching thespian talent
came from Keren Hayden as ‘mum’ Rina with a clear if quiet voice and touching every heart with her sorrowful song. The lovers were Bella Bluestar and Jack Chase. Olivia Cousins (13) spoke clearly, moved gracefully and was impressively still in her glass coffin. Ellis Dackombe (15) had composure to belie his age and played a character of heart-warming innocence. We had three villains for good measure! Freddy Furtive (Liam McGee) very nearly stole the show but the directors were onto the foxy threat and measured carefully the clever patter, the rap song and conjurer’s tricks. Enhancing Freddy’s impact was Sam Corke (16) as a near-silent, six-foot tall cat and a mime artist, to boot, sinuously feline with a manic grin. Third was The Great Stromboli, John Webb big of stature and voice, a natural actor. Francis Hayden occasionally left his mandolin to be a Coachman, a vibrant slave-driver with a loud cat-o-nine-tails. The Schoolchildren, Rosa’s dancers, Puppeteers and Pirates were all so impressive but lack of space inhibits me from printing the fifty-eight names! There was nothing bogus about this Nunney pantomime, ALL of it was manufactured in the village! The script was written there, the music score composed, the libretto devised, the wonderful props and costumes made, the production ideas perfected, the cast selected and the whole rehearsed to a tee. Not a Macaroni in sight!
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Letters
Dear Ron The following is a short extract from a letter written by Ros Roderigo to Ron Roberts in response to the first of his series of articles on the Cinderella Trophy Competition and how it is judged. It is published here, with her permission. …We were all surprised at the amount of marks awarded for music (20) as opposed to stage management (10). We understand that in a musical/operetta production that the music is very important, but in some pantomimes it is hardly a feature at all. For stage management to cover design of set, props, lighting, sound etc all for 10 marks seems very stingy, especially with the level of creativity required in panto. Anyway, I am sure there is nothing you can do about this but we felt it should be mentioned. The most important thing that came out of our discussion was that no indication had been made of a weighting to support the smaller groups against the larger. Perhaps this will come next month. For example, how do you weight an amateur director against a professional one who charges thousands? How do you weight a budget of hundreds, as in our case,
against The Wayfarers £40,000+? How do you take into account the fact that there is only one entrance/exit? How do you judge a full orchestra against a piano, if that is all there is room for, and a singer that is miked up against one that is not? If you do the very best that you can, your marks should equal those of the most lavish productions but this is certainly not the case at present and certainly the latest awards seem to totally favour the larger groups, the ones with all the advantages.
So, as you can see, your article provoked some heated discussion…
Ros Roderigo Cloverleaf Productions
On behalf of the CTC team, let me state that we enjoyed receiving your letter because we would have been disappointed if our decision to publish had fallen into a vacuum. In any group of people there will be, inevitably, differences of opinion as to how weightings should be decided and, though we would be arrogant to think our system was perfect, we all endorse it as the product of years of acknowledged experience. In response to your first point: Music is an important part of good pantomime and when it is ʻhardly a feature at allʼ the audienceʼs enjoyment is diminished. Of course
sets, lighting etc are important too but relative importance is subjective. A show with mediocre sets but fantastic music is likely to give more pleasure than a production with superb sets but poor music. Sets are designed over a period, as are lighting designs, props and sound effects. Music too has to be chosen and arranged but, on the night, ears have to be attuned and a balance and sensitivity to the song created. The soloist or chorus and the orchestra or pianist have to achieve the right sound – a more difficult accomplishment (even after rehearsal) than static scenery or mobile lighting. That is why music attracts a higher mark! A key requirement of our Marking Guide is that we do take into account the achievement of any society given the resources available. Indeed, our expectations of the ʻbiggerʼ productions are high and a mediocre theatre production will not be highly marked even when that same production would have seemed outstanding on a village stage. In effect, the societies with big budgets can draw in talent from a much larger field of experience and expertise than the village communities and, as stated, the expectations of the adjudicator will be higher. It is also important to recognise that points are awarded not only for the quality achieved but
also for the effort put in and above all for the impact of any one aspect on the overall production. As regards miked or un-miked singers, incidentally, our judgment will be based on the sound produced, the key chosen for the voice and the balance struck between orchestra or pianist. Shouting into a boom mike is a ʻmisuseʼ and marked accordingly. Many CTC awards are duplicated between theatre and village halls. This was David Beachʼs breakthrough decision (many moons ago) as a first step towards breaking the then stranglehold of some five, major theatres when it truly was the case that ʻbiggestʼ was seen to be ʻbestʼ. There will always, inevitably, be a limitation on what can be physically achieved within a restricted space and therefore a restricted number of people. The introduction of the Spotlight Trophy denied theatres the means of winning everything, a strategic ʻweightingʼ which recognised the limitation within the preceding sentence. What is significant is that in recent years, village societies have beaten theatres to the Cinderella Trophy, a testament to the fact that adjudicators do judge on the basis of ʻthe resources availableʼ. In that sense, the Spotlight and Cinderella Trophies are of equal merit.
Ron Roberts Moderator, Cinderella Trophy
JUST IN CASE YOU MISSED . . .
. . . Hearing about the e-mail to your group OR . . . reading about it in the press OR
. . . not catching it on the radio,
Somerset Fellowship of Drama are holding the County Drama Festival 2010
at KING’S COLLEGE, SOUTH ROAD, TAUNTON,
27 and 28 March, 2010. Adjudicator Jane Levan, GoDA.
SO
“Beginners please”!! This is a LAST-MINUTE call for Societies or other groups
to start preparations, select the play, sort out rehearsal schedules and signal your intention.
You may yet be in luck if you re-act immediately on reading
this and call or e-mail
Ron Roberts, 01458 241374 or [email protected]
This space is available for advertising at extraordinarily competitive rates – contact [email protected]
BULLETIN BOARD
NEXT MONTH’s SPOTLIGHT on the Web ALL ARTICLES/REVIEWS/LETTERS AND STUFF FOR THE BULLETIN BOARD TO BE SENT IN GOOD TIME FOR COPY DEADLINE – SUNDAY 21stth FEBRUARY Email: [email protected]
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