Tag Archives: Stuart Fox

BEDROOM FARCE

★★★★

The Mill at Sonning

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BEDROOM FARCE at the The Mill at Sonning

★★★★

“this vibrant revival offers many laugh-out-loud moments”

Based on a real-life incident in the author’s Stephen Joseph Theatre company in Scarborough, the comedy is set over the course of one Saturday night/Sunday morning in three different bedrooms. Wisely the director (Robin Herford, a stalwart of The Mill and an active member of Ayckbourn’s Scarborough based company, for just over a decade, earlier in his career) and designer (Michael Holt) have firmly set the show in the mid-1970s. Some of the language used, attitudes and relationships portrayed are decidedly ‘of their time’, although have the ring of truth still.

Three married couples, linked together with a fourth, by family, friendship and past relationships, ready themselves for an evening of enjoyment. The show opens with Ernest (Stuart Fox), obsessed with the damp patch in the spare room, and Delia (Julia Hills) dressing for an anniversary meal at their favourite restaurant. They consider themselves ‘regulars as they go every year’. Delia wants to talk about their son Trevor (Ben Porter) and the ‘bedroom problems’ he is having with his wife, the ‘entirely unsuitable’, Susannah (Allie Croker). Both of whom are on the guest list for prankster newlyweds, Malcolm (Antony Eden) and Kate’s (Rhiannon Handy) housewarming party that night. As are Jan (Georgia Burnell), the ‘much more suitable’ former partner of Trevor and Nick (Damien Matthews), her now husband.

Amidst the laughter there is exploration of what it means to be a married couple, the potential for infidelity and what a wife might expect to have to do to make a marriage work or the sensitivity of a husband’s ego. There is also a nod to the mental health pressures and potential victimhood within a relationship more talked about and taken more seriously today, perhaps, than fifty years ago. The more pragmatic ‘shut-up and carry-on’ attitude of Delia contrasting with the lack of confidence and self-doubt of her daughter-in-law, who is portrayed well as a nervous, irritatingly bird-like creature, repeating her mantra of self-worth at every unobserved opportunity.

There is plenty of good physical comedy too. Largely around Nick’s incapacity due to a ‘wrecked back’ meaning he remains at home alone in bed whilst Jan attends the party. This is added to through Malcolm’s attempt to prove himself, pitted against a flat-pack ‘surprise’ for his and Kate’s bedroom. The ‘coats on the bed’ of the party leading to an encounter between the former lovers, on which the rest of the plot turns, having earlier provided several moments of fine comic timing from Kate, still not ready as the guests start to arrive, being buried by the dozens of coats of the unseen guests downstairs.

The linchpin of Trevor, played with appalling self-obsession, belief and lack of awareness, wrecks not only the party, by fighting with Susannah, but also the night of Nick and Jan by descending unannounced to entirely unnecessarily apologise for his earlier actions. With Suzannah seeking her mother-in-law’s help disturbing the night of the older couple and the increasingly frenetic DIY that of the newlyweds, there is not much sleep for anyone. With Graham Weymouth’s quick and subtle lighting changes helping to shift focus across the three contrasting bedrooms on stage, the farcical element of the play alluded to in the title is enhanced well.

Ayckbourn is perhaps best known for his popular plays focused heavily on marriage in the middle classes and this vibrant revival offers many laugh-out-loud moments alongside a reassuring peek at earlier, seemingly simpler times that hints at the complications lurking below all marriages. You should see this production if you are content to laugh at yourself or those you know.


BEDROOM FARCE at the The Mill at Sonning

Reviewed on 9th August 2024

by Thomson Hall

Photography by Andreas Lambis

 

 

 

 

Previously reviewed at this venue:

THREE MEN IN A BOAT | ★★★ | June 2024
CALENDAR GIRLS | ★★★★ | April 2024
HIGH SOCIETY | ★★★★ | December 2023
IT’S HER TURN NOW | ★★★ | October 2023
GYPSY | ★★★★★ | June 2023
TOP HAT | ★★★★ | November 2022
BAREFOOT IN THE PARK | ★★★★ | July 2022

BEDROOM FARCE

BEDROOM FARCE

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After the Ball – 3 Stars

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Ball

After the Ball

Upstairs at the Gatehouse

Reviewed – 9th March 2018

★★★

” attempts to deal with some intriguing themes but unfortunately falls short”

 

Upstairs at the Gatehouse is one of London’s historic fringe theatre venues that exude a strong community spirit inside. The Gatehouse, within which the theatre is located, is steeped in local history and it seems only right that it should house a play focused upon the passage of time and memories such as Ian Grant’s After the Ball.

The story follows William (Stuart Fox) and Blanche (Julia Watson) spanning sixty years, starting in 1914 in the moments just before the outbreak of WW1 and ending in 1971. Its emphasis is upon the ways in which we take responsibility for our individual actions and, consequently, how this affects those around us.

The roles within After the Ball are purposely written for older actors by Grant who believes that not only does it offer the challenge of playing a variety of ages, but also provides substantial new material for ageing actors which is often lacking in modern theatre today. Therefore it is rather intriguing to see both actors constantly transition as the story moves backwards and forwards in time throughout. Aside from this characterisation, the costume design is the greatest indicator of which time period each scene is set in. As each character is introduced throughout the story, they bear the clothing of that particular time. However, this was not consistent towards the end of the play as their daughter, Joyce, appears in a variety of period costumes whereas the remainder of the cast do not.

Whilst the plot revolves around William and Blanche’s relationship over time, it seems the story is much more focused on William’s journey and often asks for the audience to sympathise with his emotional turbulence. William is presented as a four-dimensional character as we learn to understand the reasoning behind his mistakes throughout life. Unfortunately this was not the case for the characterisation of Blanche that at times felt superficial.

Memory is the headlining theme of After the Ball and this is most evident in the creative set (Natalie Pryce) and sound design (Chris Drohan). The soundscapes often blended into one another, as did the minimal set which frequently reminds one of searching into their memories, and the ways in which we can manipulate our memories over time.

After the Ball attempts to deal with some intriguing themes but unfortunately falls short through its execution on stage. Whilst the idea of centring the play around two older actors playing a variety of ages is refreshing, it was sometimes unclear as to which specific point in the timeline the scene was taking place. Additionally the story pays too much attention to the male struggles during wartime, and places less upon those of the female characters.

 

Reviewed by Claire Minnitt

Photography by Mitzi de Margary

 


After the Ball

Upstairs at the Gatehouse until 24th March

 

 

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