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Round and Round the Garden
Lichfield Garrick
*** THIS play forms
part of an Ayckbourn trilogy , the
Norman Conquests,
written in 1973. There are only six parts, and each play depicts the same six characters, over the same weekend, in a different part of a house. Table Manners
is set in the dining room, Living
Together in the living room, and
Round and Round the Garden,
unsurprisingly, unfolds in the garden. Each is self-contained, and may
be watched in any order, some of the scenes overlap, and on several
occasions a character's exit from one play corresponds with an entrance
in another, although they were not written to be performed
simultaneously. Round and Round the
Garden is the more frequently performed
of the trilogy requiring only one simple exterior set. Brighton based
Talking Scarlet Theatre company were formed in 2001 . Producer Patric
Kearns has a formidable track record of diverse productions to his
credit, although Chris Johnson directs a light, slight, script, littered
with strong one-liners. The cast is strong. Tom (Ben Roddy) is a
painfully socially awkward vet with a love interest in Annie (Jo
Castleton) which he struggles to advance. The part of Annie has previously been played by
Felicity Kendall and Castleton neatly portrays a warm at heart,
attractive but no sex siren, frustrated girlfriend, who succumbs to the
more direct, but equally inept, amorous advances of Norman (Philip
Stewart) who is really under the thumb of his wife Ruth (Louise
Faulkner). Faulkner’s taciturn world weariness is a delight,
as is her struggle with opening a deck chair. But it is Kevin Pallister
who steals the show with an energetic portrayal of wise cracking Reg,
ably assisted by Natasha Gray, sporting height of fashion green eye
shadow, as his wife Sarah. The Aykbourn aficionados in the audience loved
it, with superlatives being bandied around among their number at both
the interval, and full time. Enthusiastically acted, physical and verbal
badinage was expertly delivered in a faultless recreation of this 1970’s
piece. It is of its time. Sexual paranoia is all
pervading as the free love mantra and optimism of the sixties gave way
to economic uncertainty and sexual uncertainty. “Romance has been
destroyed by cynics and liberationists,” cries one line. I could not help but
notice the age of the audience which was predominantly sixty plus with
very few young faces. While a fine period piece, whether the
Norman Conquests
will outlive its contemporary audience is another matter. There was
gentle humour as the question of whether an unfaithful liaison required
new pyjamas as there was no reason for the pyjamas to be unfaithful too
was debated, but vet Tom’s lament for the simple world of animal passion
where the beasts were either on or off heat felt discordant. A Seventies soundtrack
interspersed the three act performance which was deservedly warmly
received by an appreciative audience.
Round and Round the Garden runs till
Wednesday 10th February then continues on national tour. Gary Longden
08-02-16 http://www.talking-scarlet.co.uk/
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