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Not all right on the night fun
The Play that Goes Wrong
Malvern Theatres
***** A CORPSE that does not stay still, and
even walks off stage; hiding in grandfather clocks, pyrotechnics,
mistimed sound cues and entrances, mistaken identities – this show has
all the tricks of broad farce and more! The Play that Goes Wrong offers us a play within
a play, a murder mystery that provides the skeleton of a plot, a piece
presented by the Cornley Polytechnic Drama Society and one which
epitomises all the stereotypical weaknesses of some old-time amateur
dramatics. We are at Haversham Manor on the night of Charlie
Haversham’s engagement party, but alas he is dead, presumed murdered.
But by whom? His fiancée is having an affair with the deceased’s
brother. Are they the guilty ones? Inspector Carter arrives to
investigate but everything goes wrong! The door is locked so the cast
enter through the side-wall; the stage crew remove props and place props
on stage with the visible hand reaching around the scenery; the gun does
not work when it should, the sound cues occur at the wrong times; the
wrong props are available when collected by members of the household so
that the Inspector ends up writing his notes with a key on the vase; the
stretcher used to carry the corpse collapses to leave the actors walking
off with two poles, while the corpse has to make his own way off stage a
few moments later. This is a play where everything ‘goes wrong’! One is
reminded of Frank Spencer and ‘Some Mothers do Have ‘Em’ – the farce of
everything endlessly going wrong! There is a strong element of ‘taking the mick’
out of all that is least professional about amateur dramatics. The style
of the acting is ‘ham’ to the ultimate extreme. Everything is
overplayed: the use of voice, the gestures, the pointing of key elements
of the plot to the audience, the ‘corpsing’ (falling out of character)
by cast members, the props that fail, the set that falls apart. It is a context in which the ‘corniest’ of jokes
can be hilarious. That linked to the traditional elements of farce:
repeatedly for instance doors open to knock out a cast member that is
hiding behind it. NERVE-WRACKING The collapse of the upstairs study floor was
hilarious and nerve-wracking at the same time. The rather typical
‘amateur’ trap of getting into a groove and repeating the same page of
the script like an old LP that has stuck in a groove was managed with
variety, timing and skill. And to top it all the final collapse of the set
near the end was brilliantly executed. One aspect of this show that
deserves great credit was that it succeeded in sustaining and even
building the humour through the second act and continuing to spring some
surprises until the end. The whole gamut of tricks is run through and
more! The cast performed with tremendous energy and
life. It is a young team, the show is settled and extremely slick. They
provide a contrasting team of physiques and voices that blend and give a
strong sense of cohesion and shared fun. David Hearn‘s performance as Max, Cecil Haversham
and indeed the gardener with the invisible dog was particularly
outstanding: balancing the hints of ‘corpsing’ with the excessive
intensity required for acting in a farce; enjoying the audience’s
laughter and approval as specifically directed at himself; demonstrating
his physical skills in holding props on the wall with both hands while
managing the phone with his feet. The Inspector reminds one of Basil Fawlty and
Inspector Clouseau whose world is collapsing around him, excellently
portrayed by Henry Shields. There are no weaknesses in the cast – even
the Stage Manager and the Technician perform their parts brilliantly.. To the humourless it will have seemed silly, some
of the humour or jokes are overplayed; but to the very full audience
last night, both old and numerous younger ones too, it was hilarious.
They came ready to laugh from the very outset and they were rewarded
with a vibrant show that was devoid of smutty humour yet kept them
laughing to the end. They loved it! Tim Crow23-04=14
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