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| John Dorney as Bernard, Isabel Della-Porta as Gloria - Photo by Sheila Burnett |
PARIS, 1962 in a penthouse flat in Paris and Bernard, John
Dorney, has a very unusual life, but it appears he has everything running
smoothly, with three fiancées – Gloria, Isabel Della-Porta, Gabriella, Nathalie
Barclay, and Gretchen, Jessica Dennis, all of them flight attendants for
different airlines, on different routes, with different timings. Bernard has everything
working to perfection with his flight timetables and his long-suffering maid Bertha,
Jo Castleton, who changes the photographs and makes sure the correct food is
ready for each fiancé, keeping them unaware of each other’s existence. Everything
changes with the prospect of a new faster jet, a storm and the arrival of an
old school friend, Robert, Paul Sandys.
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| Jo Castleton as Bertha - Photo by Sheila Burnett |
The script brilliantly sets up the farce in Bernard’s ‘perfect
life’, before his world falls apart as we enjoy his downfall. The cast work so
well together especially John Dorney and Paul Sandys. John, brings an almost Basil
Fawlty feel to his performance, larger than life, as we feel his anguish,
enjoying every minute. He doesn’t take it over-the-top, just the right amount
of silliness. The set by Bek Palmer shows the penthouse flat perfectly with the
arrangement of doors ready for the swift farcical movement, but at the same
time looks like an aircraft instrument, showing the three fiancées’ flightpaths
across the skies.
Fast paced, split second timing with the doors makes for a
highly entertaining evening.
Runs until Saturday 30th July
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