Alan Ayckbourn’s well-loved bedroom hopping comedy,
centres around the disruption caused by tempestuous couple Trevor and Susannah.
They begin by ruining the party of loves young dream Kate and Malcolm. The audience
quickly realise it’s going to be a long and hilarious night.
The Stage was set (Designed by Megan Smith) with
three different bedrooms, each impressing the character of its owner. Coupled
with simple but effective lighting (Designed by Matthew Todhunter) creating the
perfect environment to showcase it’s larger than life characters. The devil is
in the detail and simple but important touches such as party music (Sound
design Kate Scott) only furthered my enjoyment of this skilled production. I
must applaud Director Steve Hewitt for finding every joyous moment in the
production that was possible to find and then some. It is very clear a lot of
work has gone into this riotously fun production.
The erratic Susannah (Emily Smith), coupled with
the saucy but ultimately useless Trevor (Adam Owers) set the drama in
motion with a perfectly placed slap. Adam Owers had me in fits of laughter at
his portrayal of this shameless character, even remembering to do the ‘walking
to the dance floor’ walk as he exists to join the party. Kate (Ellie Pullen)
had the ideal balance, exasperation and awkwardness as she has to deal with the
many complications created by having Trevor and then Susannah in her room.
While husband Malcolm (Ian Wills) becomes steadily more frustrated as he argues
with flat pack. Jan (Kate Lundy) is master of the understated look, as her bed
bound husband Nick (Adam Thompson) is definitely king of comic timing. Nick is
in a lot of pain and after watching Adam Thompson as he attempts to retrieve his
book, so was I, as my sides nearly split! All the coupling in this show was
well done but none more so than Ernest (Roger Liddle) and Delia (Maggie
Childs), as they brought out shared excitement at the prospect of Sardines on
toast. Never before has the cleaning of pilchards, made me gasp as Ernest
eyes said it all. As Delia snuggles in, only to be abruptly offered a
reading of ‘Tom Browns school days’ you can’t help but love these characters
and the talented actors who play them.
A joyful treat not to be missed.
Bed Room Farce is on at the People’s Theatre from
10th-14th March
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