The Wind in the Willows -Review - Royalty Theatre

The Wind in the Willows

Royalty Theatre
25th June 2018

The Royalty Theatre are ending their 2017/18 season with a great classic children's story. Kenneth Grahame's Wind in the Willows, adapted for the stage by Mike Kenney, tells the unfortunate tale of Mr Toad of Toad Hall, his foolhardy adventures, and the attempts of his riverside friends, Ratty, Mole and Badger to save himself from his folly.

The first thing that sprang to mind at the thought of a stage production of this story, was how would they portray the characters? Would they go down the full animal costume and masks route - unlikely as the costs to do this well would surely blow the budget - or would they eschew the physical  appearance and concentrate more on the mannerisms of each animal?  I'm happy to say that the directors - Andrew Barella and Nikki Slack have opted for a half-way house - or maybe a three-quarter house. Some deft makeup gave each character a just a hint of the physical appearance, a little black nose, a sprinkling of whiskers, (quite dapper whiskers on the part of Ratty), bold stripes for Badger and a green forehead and fringe for Mr Toad. The rest of the characterisation is entirely done through the acting skills of the cast. Damien Wood in the guise of Badger moves and speaks ponderously in his thoughtful deep brock voice. Toad (full of his own importance) pontificates about his own greatness, sidling in and hijacking conversations, he oozes charm one moment and is petulant as a toddler the next. Billy Towers has the audience laughing out loud at the antics of Toad almost from the first moment he appears on stage.

The stars of the show though are Mole and Ratty. Two animals who form an unexpected and lasting friendship. Lee Wilkins excels at the arch look or eyeroll  towards the audience to highlight a ridiculous statement from Toad. Throughout the play he is constantly living his character - even when the focus is not on him, he contributes a look or shrug, just the smallest movement to add something to the scene. His use of facial expression and physical humour puts me in mind of Stan Laurel.

Ratty and Mole messing about in boats 

Rose Whittle bounces around the stage portraying a Mole filled with curiosity, with the attention span of a gnat! Full of enthusiasm for life and adventure she bounces from scene to scene, making friends with everyone and stumbling into her own misadventures. Like the proverbial cat, Mole's curiosity constantly gets her into scrapes, and the practical Ratty is always there to help her out. There is a great chemistry on stage between all the characters but especially between these two, which creates an equally great response in the audience.

The main characters are ably supported by the ensemble cast who play a variety of minor characters from weasels to washerwomen (Julie Carney), Otters to posh ladies (Amy Dowell), hedgehogs to Engine Drivers to Rabbits (Charlotte Bishop and Ben Harrison) and the reluctant Horse, Train Guard and posh gentleman (Aidan Evans) each one adds their own bit of sparkle to the tale.

Mention should go to the technical team under Declan Mather for the music (strains of a spaghetti western), sound effects and lighting which create the sense mystery and magic, suspense and apprehension. And especially to David Farn and John Bailey for the set and props - the motor cars and the boats are an hilarious addition. Costumes are made by Laura Finlay and Sue Bailey and make-up is by Nik Grundison. Altogether they have produced a great set for the show.

This is a fun, warm and entertaining family show and is a fabulous feel good ending to their season. You'll laugh (probably more than you should if Toad's make-up gives way under the heat of the lights again) and you will leave the theatre with a happy smile on your face. What more could you want?

Tickets are just £8 (£6.50 conc) and can be booked online, over the phone 0333 666 3366 or in person at theatre. Full details here .

Photo credit: Royalty Theatre

Denise Sparrowhawk

 

Preview - Billingham Players at the Theatre Upstairs - Autumn 2017 Season

Preview Autumn 2017

Exit Routes
Christmas Past, Christmas Present
Billingham Players at The theatre Upstairs. 

The Billingham Players start their new season with Exit Routes written by Liz Turner, directed by Denise Phillips.  A group of five factory women share their thoughts, dreams and problems, swapping jokes and insults as they try to cope with the daily grind. They are always looking for that lottery win, and are always disappointed. They begin to look elsewhere for a means of escape, and when their colleague Corinne returns from holiday, it seems it's no co-incidence that Tessa's husband has been away at exactly the same time. And then the Christmas club money disappears along with Corinne...
Exit Routes runs from Mon 9th to Sat 14th Oct. 

This is followed in December by the Christmas Show - Christmas Past, Christmas Present, a seasonal spectacular. This musical show is directed by Sue Brackenbury, with musical direction by Steve McNichol. It runs from Weds 6th to Sat 9th December.

Billingham Players are an amateur theatre group which began life as ‘The Synthonia Players’, associated with ICI and performed at the Synthonia Club on Belasis Avenue. In 1974 they took the decision to run their own theatre and moved to the Theatre Upstairs, a former dance hall above the co-op stores, changing their name to The Billingham Players. Their members come from all walks of life, ranging in age from teenagers to (shall we say) the more mature thespian. They stage a number of productions each year and have a very varied programme.

Details of their shows are available online at www.billinghamplayers.co.uk
Tickets to the shows cost £11 (£9) and are available from:
Perfect Fit, Station Rd, Billingham,
Rediscover Stockton, High Street, Stockton
Or book by phone on 01642 586180 or 551981

The Ugly Duckling - Review - Whitburn Parish Hall

The Ugly Duckling
Northumberland Theatre Company
Whitburn Parish Hall
18th Dec 2015

Cast: Eleanor Dennison, Laura Jayne Ayres, Louis Roberts, Natalie Simone and Robert Pegge.

Last night in a little parish hall in Whitburn a bit of magic happened!

Three ducklings were born. Two beauties - yellow and fluffy with impressive quacks (this is important, a duckling needs a good quack!). The other not so yellow. Not so fluffy, and not such a beauty, with no quack at all. She was given a beautiful name in the hope that she would grow into it. Desdemona Duckling.

Her brother and sister and the other farm fowl were beautiful to look at and they made fun of Desdemona. They didn't want to be seen with her. They thought she was a Turkey. But Desdemona was beautiful inside and she does indeed grow into her name.

Now obviously they were not real ducklings. They were actors with the Northumberland Theatre Company. A small touring company, they take their shows out on the road to places that don't have easy access to theatre. They stage plays in village halls and community centres, transforming a room into a theatre for a night (and creating that bit of magic I mentioned earlier).

The tale of The Ugly Duckling is charming and funny - laugh out loud funny. It's billed as a pantomime and it does have some of the key traits of panto, eggsellent bad jokes, baddies, magical moments and audience participation. but it is a much gentler, subtler production - not so in your face as a traditional panto.

Just five actors play all the parts, with nifty costume changes they are transformed from roosters to foxes to ravens, from ducklings to hens to frogs. These are five very versatile and talented actors and they made the changes look deceptively easy - but it's not everyone who can keep kids and adults engaged, intrigued and believing in the characters in front of them. Louis Roberts moves seamlessly with little more than the shake of a tale feather from Mr Rooster with his lazy southern drawl, to the cheeky cockney Mr Fox, to mysterious Kha the Raven with his lilting Scottish accent. Each of his characters connected with the audience, no matter what their age - even garnering sympathy from one of the children when Doris Duck (Eleanor Dennison) defends her ducklings by giving him a mighty whack with an oar (that's animal cruelty, that is!)

 

This is a charming adaptation of Hans Christian Andersen's tale. A story with a moral and a strong message about the nature of beauty, friendship, courage and self-worth but it is told with good humour and not a hint of preachiness. The audience was mostly adults with a scattering of children and everyone enjoyed the performance from the youngest to the oldest.

 

The audience were all very local Whitburn people and we were obviously incomers but were made to feel perfectly welcome and included. All in all a lovely experience.

 

The Ugly Duckling tour continues for some time so if it is coming to a Hall near you make sure you get along to it - accompanying small child entirely optional! It's an hour and a half well spent and I guarantee you will come away feeling warm and fuzzy!

 

More info about tour dates and venues at Northumberland Theatre Company . The tour runs until end of January.

 

Denise Sparrowhawk

Beauty and the Beast - Review - People's Theatre

Beauty and the Beast
People's Theatre
15th Dec 2015


What do you get if you cross a bit of magic, a good witch, a beautiful girl, and a handsome prince, with a wicked wizard and a terrible curse? Answer...a Tale as Old as Time!  And if you cross that tale with some brilliant actors, beautiful dancers, fabulous costumes and some really terrible jokes - you get this year's Panto at the People's Theatre! In their press release they say that the People's panto has become something of an institution in Newcastle and they are not wrong. The auditoruim was filled with people of all ages.

This year's panto has tradition with a capital T. It takes a traditional tale and gives it that special Newcastle pantomine twist - with all the local jokes, poking fun at the neighbours, and so of course my home town gets a bit of stick, along with with the posh (and not so posh) bits of Newcastle itself! Greggs the Bakers and the Co-op are all fair game. In fact, if you're a northern institution and you don't get a mention you might want to ask yourself why not?

You know exactly where you are with Beauty and the Beast from the excellent backdrops and stage set, to the goodies and baddies there are no surprises - well apart from the bangs and flashes of magic - we ought to have been ready for those but somehow they did catch us out and had us jumping with shock and surprise! Those bangs are LOUD! We booed and hissed at at the devilish Diablo (played with a truly awful french(??) accent by Roger Liddle, and the hideously evil, Camilla Parker-Bike (Sarah Scott plays the self-serving mayoress with rather worrying assurance, keep an eye on her - she'll be nabbing all the best leading roles!) and her odious brother Claude ( James Beresford Simpson - Ding Dong, Belle! He does make your flesh creep!).
Of course we Oui-Ouied with Bertie (nous sommes, indeed, votre amis Joe Robson!)
We laughed at jokes that we'd heard before and a few that we hadn't and we cheered and screamed when required! The monster was always behind them and they never believed us. We played along and sang along and we were happy and we knew it!

Dancers from Jill Errington's School of Dance and Newcastle High School for Girls provided the Awwh! factor, and Clann Na Nagel Irish Dance Academy provided elegance, glamour and fancy footwork (to even the balance for Dame Fifi - her glamour is just a tad less subtle, being All about the Bass as she is!)


The costumes are fantastic - Belle (Emma Jane Richards) has beautiful gowns, As, of course, does Dame Fifi Latrine (Steve Robertson) but best of all is the Beast - Craig Fairbairn is hidden for under a magnificent fabulously "fluffy" mask complete with flowing mane and ferocious teeth!
The music was excellent with numbers such as C'est la Vie, Somebody to Love, and All About the Bass as well as Be our Guest and the signature Beauty and the Beast, Tale as Old as Time.
A good Panto keeps the audience engaged throughout, and the cast certainly did that on Tuesday evening - solid performances from everyone including Anne Cater as Bon Bon, Kevin Gibson as Professor Baguette and either Minnie Dobson or Lottie Glover-Stewart who both play Millie who is the foil to Bertie and provides a lot of the incidental humour (if it is possible to have incidental humour in a panto...?)
Was there anything not to like in this? Well the sound wasn't quite right - mics weren't working as well as they should so some of the terrible punchlines were almost missed if you weren't paying attention, but I'm sure that glitch will be sorted. Other than that it was hard to tell (as usual for the People's Theatre), that this was an amateur production. A brilliant set, fantastic dancers, terrible jokes and a happy ending (oh yes, there is!) Great family entertainment and possibly their best panto yet!

It plays until 20th December and is a snap at £14 a ticket - why pay more?

Denise Sparrowhawk

Daisy Pulls it Off - Review - People's Theatre

Daisy Pulls It Off
People's Theatre
21st Jan 2015

Daisy Meredith, daughter of an opera singer, has won a scholarship to Grangewood School for Girls. She is the first elementary school pupil to to benefit from the new scholarship. Naturally she is thrilled and cannot wait to meet the rest of the girls, dreaming of the hockey and games, midnight feasts and jolly japes that she has read about in books. She soon discovers that life at a boarding school full of girls who have money and family behind them is not always as jolly as she had imagined. Not all the girls are so happy for her to be there as she is herself. And one or two are just plain mean! Daisy has her work cut out to forge a place for herself in the school, and must battle against class prejudice to win through. Along the way there is of course the mystery of the Burlington treasure, Mr Thompson and the enigmatic Mr Scoblowski to solve.

This is an amusing spoof of the girls' boarding school story. It is full to the brim of the aforementioned japes - both jolly and downwright mean - plenty of topping plans, secret societies, best chums, midnight adventures and a bucketload of patriotism! It is given the added twist of the casting of adults in all the parts and a team of teaching staff that would make Alistair Sim proud!

A clever set and lighting ease the play through its many scenes and skillful direction keeps the action flowing and the audience involved. Maggie Childs and Alison Carr pull off the roles of best friends Daisy and Trixie with ease.

There is a lot riding on her being able to prove her worth - Will Daisy pull it off? Will it be Jubilate! or expulsion? Come to the People's Theatre this week to find out!

A topping romp through boarding school!
Plays until the 24th Jan.

Denise Sparrowhawk

Review - Red Hot and Cole - Tynemouth Amateur Operatic Society

Red Hot and Cole 
Tynemouth Amateur Operatic Society
Thursday 17th July 2014

On Thursday evening I was invited along to King's Priory School in Tynemouth to the dress rehearsal of Red Hot and Cole, performed by the Tynemouth Amateur Operatic Society, directed by Bryan Watson (making his directorial debut).

As you might expect, this is a feast of wonderful show tunes. Following the life of the millionaire composer through anecdotal reminiscences from friends, the show reveals the hedonistic lifestyle of the rich and famous and Cole Porter's rise to fame, his careful manipulation of friends to make the right contacts, but also his insecurity and need for affirmation and adoration. Even before he is famous he has a band of loyal supporters - but were they true friends or merely sycophants drawn to a wealthy man? Time would tell. As his fame grew, so did his lavish lifestyle. Like moths to a flame people were drawn to him, and he to them. A workaholic, despite being rich in his own right ("What did your grandfather do to make you so wealthy?" "He died...") Cole (Phil Dixon) gradually alienates his wife Linda (Rebecca Mellor) and they end up living apart until tragedy strikes reunites them for a while. And in the hard times that follow, the true friends stick by him.

The show flows through Porters hits - each one illustrating a development in his life. The musical numbers are beautifully performed, with musical direction from Andrew Soulsby and choreography by Lyndsey Harrison. The costumes are sumptuous - as they should be, and the wit is cutting!
It's hard to single out individuals as all the performances were excellent. Phil Dixon in the lead is brilliantly cheeky, and Lucy Cockeline as Elsa sets the scene and mood of the show right from the start. I particularly liked Julia Neale in the role of Bricktop - her voice was amazing. And Chris Carr played Noel Coward to a T!

This was the dress rehearsal, so there were a few minor glitches - which will no doubt be ironed out by time the show opened to the public. It is a glorious celebration of Porter's work - well performed, beautifully sung. Bryan Watson and the cast can be suitably proud of their show.

Red Hot and Cole plays on Fri 18th and Sat 19th July. It is well worth a visit - you will leave the theatre humming your favourite tunes and tapping your feet!

Denise Sparrowhawk

Review - Get Up and Tie Your Fingers - Town Hall Theatre

Get up and Tie your Fingers

 

Thurs 5th June

 

Town Hall Theatre, Hartlepool

 

 

Get Up and Tie Your Fingers is based on the lives of the herring lasses - independent women who followed the herring fleets. Tough, strong, hardworking women they travelled with the fishing fleet as it followed the shoals along the coast, gutting and selling the fish. It was a hard but rewarding life that gave these women the opportunity to travel and to earn money of their own at a time when independent women in any society were a rarity.

It is a tale of hardship and tragedy. Lives lost through sickness and drowning, families broken by cholera and the sea, a tale of despair and regret, guilt and blame.

But it is also of resilience, of loyalty and of hope. It is a story of identity, told through song (using local choirs at each venue on the tour, in this case from Hartlepool Sixth Form College) and reminiscences and action.
 

Jean (played by Barbara Marten) has spent a lifetime lost in regret. She clings to her daughter Molly (Samantha Foley) refusing to let her join a crew to follow the herring, arguing with her friend Janet (Sian Mannifield) over it. The three characters each represent a different outlook on life - Jean dour and intransigent, full of self recrimination and regret, Janet practical but full of life, refusing to let the tragedies of life weigh her down, and Molly, a dreamer, full of hope and excitement, impatient to experience life for herself. The love between these three women shines out despite their arguments and differences.

The cast is entirely female yet men are central to the women's lives - husbands, fathers and sons - they appear in the story only through the words of the women and yet are as real as the characters on the stage.
 

This is an incredibly moving play, beautifully produced and presented and performed, portraying a way of life and an industry that was once the mainstay of coastal communities, and which is now gone forever. You will laugh and, possibly, cry at at it.

There is one more show in Hartlepool tonight then, like the herring shoals it moves on down the coast.

 

For more information  Follow the Herring!

 

Denise Sparrowhawk

Review - The Next Train to Depart - Arts Centre Washington

The Next Train to Depart

Arts Centre Washington
30^th Jan 2014
 

Written by John Challis and directed by Melanie Rashbrooke, The Next Train to Depart is the first of three Bitesize plays from Queen’s Hall Arts.

The play follows the developing relationship of two people who meet by chance at a railway station. Dante (Adam Donaldson) is a would be poet, sitting in the station day after day people watching, and writing, and waiting for his girlfriend to call. Kayleigh (Alex Tahnee) is a call centre worker, on her last warning for being late, and stuck in a rut in her personal life.

We see them develop from chance acquaintances to friends, and maybe more. Kayleigh dreams of another life, another world, finding an escape in their daily meetings, growing in confidence finally realising that she must take the chance to change her life. Dan matures and becomes less self conscious as a writer, finding inspiration in Kayleigh’s dreams. But will he have the strength to choose adventure when the time comes?

 

This is a simple, gentle play, with some beautiful, poetic moments set against the background of station sounds (which were recorded for real at Newcastle Central). It asks questions about life and relationships, personal happiness and development, and our ability to choose to change.  There is a real sense of two people on the brink of discovery, but perhaps too afraid to step out. In the end you are left feeling that one of them at least will take the opportunity and move forward.

The Next Train to Depart is playing at Seaton Delaval Arts Centre and Alnwick Playhouse in February and is well worth an hour of your time.

Denise Sparrowhawk

Make Better Please -Review- Northern Stage

Make Better Please
Northern Stage
15 June 2012

Writer: Fuel, Uninvited Guests
Director: Paul Clark
Reviewer: Michael Hunter
Rating: 4 Stars

I love the news. Turning on the TV or the radio on the hour and flicking through the papers in the newsagents, to find out what has happened to that corrupt politician, my football team, and events all over the globe, is one of favourite ever things. For me 'no news' is 'bad news'.
At the minute the European Football Championships and the run up to the London Olympics (the Olympic torch/flame is currently in Newcastle) is high on the agenda of every publication, be it broad sheet or red top.
The smaller stories are also making big headlines; a Scottish schoolgirl who has created a school dinner blog, had been told to cease publication because the local authority didn't like it, creating waves etc, but was overturned to maybe save their face.

Once the theatre doors were opened, we were lead to the backstage of Studio 2. I didn't know if this would be as normal, with audience in seats and actors performing for us. I was pleasantly surprised to see that the audience would play a massive part in tonight's proceedings.
Laid out before us were four small coffee tables full of the days newspapers, massive pots of tea, biscuits and writing implements.
We were told to look through the papers and find a story that shocked, or held something strong in our hearts; a story that fuelled enough passion to be able to create further discussion.
The assembled audience picked five stories that were all shocking, or thought provoking to merit inclusion to the next stage of the night. We were also told the pick a story that had a little bit of hope included.
Once the tables had been cleared away we all sat in a circle and after a minutes silence to reflect on our thoughts were asked to relay the stories to the other members of the audience.
This is where it became apparent that our stories would figure highly in whatever happened to the the rest of the night, our thoughts and stories would become theatre itself.
The performing artists of Paul Clark, Richard Dufty and Jessica Hoffman leapt into action as each story was finally told. They became the headline, they became Cameron,or Tesco's chief officer. The audience became judge and jury, we had to ask the headline makers why, when and how much!!.
We were put into a scenario of a war torn village in Homs, some of us were the fighters, some of us were the dead. Again a minute silence was put into place to reflect on what was happening. For myself it was quite emotional, thinking about how I could possibly kill another human being, i am sure the dead amongst the crowd felt similar.
Another scenario of the Leveson inquiry had us thinking what really did go on in the minds of the top brass of the Uk's power leaders.
All of the stories that we had picked were transcribed onto the wall of the theatre by the performers, think of the studio wall in 'Have I Got News For you' with current issues sticking out like sore thumbs.
The god or indeed the devil of bad news was paraded in front of us. Some of us were given mugs of milk to throw over him to, maybe to confirm our hatred of the stories that he loved to make popular.
Atmospheric music and sounds from the likes of cymbals being crashed, a piano being plonked and a mad crazy drummer beating out rhythms led us to Hoffman being the narrator to all of the stories involved, creating a crescendo of swirling words and mayhem.
I must admit that some of the scenes were very contemporary, leaving the audience asking questions that might only come to them in the days that pass. The devil wearing a huge newspaper made penis, certainly one of them, although I did guffaw when he started to bash the bass drum with it.

It was then our turn to highlight the hope that can come from the mass media, we again rose to our feet and reeled off stories that we found, or stories of our own little utopia.
The ending lead us to outside the theatre with the performers burning up our little pieces of paper of headlines, with the hope of 'Make Better Please'.
Make Better Please was a joy to be part of, really made me think that there is more to a story than just the simple headlines. The depth of tonight's performance will be put into full force the next time I buy my newspaper or get a thrill when the clock strikes the hour to tune into the radio news headlines.


Runs until 16th June

Tags: Fuel,Jessica Hoffman,Make Better Please,Newcastle,Northern Stage,Paul Clark,Richard Dufty,Uninvited Guests

Michael Hunter

The Pitmen Painters -Review- People's Theatre

The Pitmen Painters
The People's Theatre 
13 June 2011

The first time that Lee Hall's The Pitmen Painters was in our region was the professional production at Live Theatre along Newcastle's Quayside.
I viewed that performance with open mouthed awe. It was well before my days as a hobbyist theatre reviewer but even then I would have gave it a magnificent 5*'s.
Tonight -and for the rest of the SOLD OUT week- it is the turn of the amateurs. Hall (of Billy Elliot fame) has given special permission for the first staging of this North East tale by an amdram team.
The Pitmen Painters is the story and fine social commentary on the harsh North East working platform. Seen through the eyes of five Ashington pitmen; struggling with the many hours underground for a pittance of a wage. They need more out of their existence of work-home-work, so the onsite Union devise up a deflection tactic (absolutely nothing to do with their work) of creating an art appreciation society. What starts off as looking at unfamiliar and alien pieces set by their tutor Robert Lyon, turns into competition between the miners at who can produce the best art between them all with a humourous-but subtle-edge, but remain totally focused as a group. What follows is a wonderfully funny tale of 'whoever you are you can be whatever you want to be'.
Given that The People's Theatre is an amateur theatre, you would think that this production would be very much lower in expectations to the more professional offerings of the original in 2007. You would be very very wrong to think along these lines. From the staging to the lighting, the audio visual delights to the wonderful acting of the local players, The Pitmen Painters is a smash, it was very very close to the Max Roberts directed play all those years ago. The Pitmen's has of course gone on to score rave reviews in Broadway on the other side of the pond. George Brown played by Harry Gilbert took off the very much nose-in-his-union-rule-book character with so much realism that I wanted to join up there and then. The humour of the down to earth workmen surrounding the styles of their painting and practice was so upbeat that even the sometimes glum Marxist Harry Wilson played by Mike Smith cracked up a few times. Jimmy Floyd played by Steven Robertson kept the humour flowing with some fantastic scenes. The youthful essence of the play rested on the shoulders of the 'Young Lad' played by Steven Wallace, his performance reminded me of Pike out of BBC's 'Dads Army' he even had a long stripey scarf to boot. Lyon's commanding part played by Matthew Cummins kept the balance between roll on the floor laughter and serious educational desires. Star painter and keen to 'get it' Oliver Kilbourn played by Pete McAndrew has a major role alongside Helen Sutherland played by the fab Val Russell, his talent was immediately picked up by art collector Sutherland, who wanted him to give up his 9 to 5 to fund his ambitions. The interaction between these two was fantastic to see, cumulating in terrific scenes that the audience grasped. Grace Robson made up the numbers by playing a life art model Susan Parks, her feisty character certainly was eye opening.
Chris Heckels directing has done a brilliant job with fantastic actors to turn this play into the hit that it is. It is really exciting that full houses will be enjoying, laughing and contemplating what the Pitmen had to go through to paint and show off their art.
Superb production from Derek Nellist (stage design), Lighting (Richard Flood) and Tom Saunders (projections) gave this a very crisp feel, buzzing with energy.
I cant give this 5 out of 5 as a rating as a few lines were talked over by other characters, and have to say that at the back of the theatre it was a little hard to hear audibly. Altogether though this was a superb performance that I have been used to at People's. Nothing at all amateur about this staging, well done

Runs until 18 June 

Michael Hunter

Chapterhouse Theatre Company press release

CHAPTERHOUSE THEATRE COMPANY

Presents

Open-air garden theatre UK and Ireland 2011

Magical Theatre in Magical Surroundings

Cranford

Directed by Rebecca Gadsby

The Taming of the Shrew

Directed by Rebecca Gadsby, Music Composed by Richard Main

A Midsummer Night's Dream

Directed by Andrew Ashenden, Music Composed by Richard Main

Sense and Sensibility

Directed by Rebecca Gadsby

Snow White

Script by Laura Turner, Music and lyrics by Richard Main and Laura Turner

                            

‘A brilliant staging of Jane Austen's classic’ Michael Hunter, Shields Gazette, 2011

“not only beautiful, but also laugh out loud funny and incredibly well acted”

Don't Delay, 2010

Chapterhouse Theatre Company is touring five wonderful new productions across the length and breadth of the UK and Ireland, from June to September 2011. In a season of magical, mysterious and romantic characters, Chapterhouse is performing some of the best-loved stories of literature. We pride ourselves on producing accessible, traditional but innovative shows that have entertained thousands of theatregoers throughout the UK and Ireland.

“played to perfection” Worthing Herald 2011

‘Don’t miss…the perfect evening’ The Daily Express

If you would like any further information regarding tickets for competitions and press reviews, interviews with directors/actors or details for specific venues please contact Chelsey Cottrill on 01522 569777 or leave a message with our office staff. We will always be glad to hear from you.

CHAPTERHOUSE THEATRE COMPANY

Open-air garden theatre UK and Ireland 2011

Foreword

Magical Theatre in Magical Surroundings

Chapterhouse Theatre Company enters its 12^th season of touring open-air theatre at some of the most beautiful country houses, castles and heritage sites across the UK and Ireland.

From a first year of performances at some thirty venues with Romeo and Juliet in 2000, the company has established itself as one of the most successful and acclaimed touring companys in the country. In previous years the company has toured with a variety of shows including Shakespeare’s, Romeo and Juliet, Twelfth Night and The Taming of The Shrew together with performances of classic works such as The Mystery Plays and Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. In 2004 the company produced the first West End show ever to tour open-air, ART directed by Nigel Havers.

In 2011 Chapterhouse is performing in over one hundred of Britain and Ireland's most beautiful and idyllic garden settings, such as Woburn Abbey, Savill Gardens and Fountains Abbey, the perfect venues for garden and theatre lovers alike. Open-air theatre lends itself perfectly to pre-show picnics creating an enjoyable and memorable experience for the audience. A wonderful opportunity for friends and family to sit back and enjoy the pleasure of each other’s company whilst indulging in a glass of chilled summer wine and watching a fantastic evening of entertainment.  

Whether a play seen under the stars or during an afternoon of summer’s bliss, Chapterhouse welcomes you to their 2011 season.

"...an entertaining performance."

               "...this confident company should be commended for their enthusiastic production"

Lisa Whitbread, The Stage – 2010

“A charming, accessible and most enjoyable production”

Fraser Marshall, The Leicester Mercury – 2010

‘Open-air theatre at it’s best’

Richard Parr, Eastern Daily Press – 2009

‘an energetic and lively performance’

Fiona Reid, Annandale Observer – 2011

‘not to be missed’

Worthing Herald - 2011

‘Delightful...enthusiastic...entertaining company’

The Stage – 2010

'well received by the sell out crowd’

Annandale Observer - 2011

If you would like any further information regarding tickets for competitions and press reviews, interviews with directors/actors or details for specific venues please contact Chelsey Cottrill on 01522 569 777 or leave a message with our office staff. We will always be glad to hear from you.

Open-Air Garden Theatre 2011

Cranford
Written By Laura Turner
Adapted from the novel by Elizabeth Gaskell

Relax into a lazy summer’s evening of delightful entertainment as Chapterhouse transports you to the sleepy Victorian town of Cranford. Based on Elizabeth Gaskell’s classic novel, this brand-new adaptation of Cranford will bring a smile to young and old alike as the adventures and dramas of life in the countryside are brought to a picturesque venue near you as part of the national celebrations of Gaskell's bicentenary.

The Taming of the Shrew
By William Shakespeare

The battle of the sexes is in full swing as Chapterhouse Theatre Company presents one of Shakespeare’s most wonderful comedies. Feisty Katherina meets her match in Petruchio, who slowly manages to woo the shrew with a somewhat unconventional courtship. Merriment will meet the magic of true love under beautiful summer skies at some of the UK and Ireland’s most spectacular venues. Be sure to join Chapterhouse in 2011, as tricks, tantrums and lovers’ tiffs create a hilarious evening’s entertainment.

Sense and Sensibility

Written By Laura Turner
Adapted from the novel by Jane Austen

Join Chapterhouse Theatre Company for an evening of Regency wonderment as Elinor and Marianne Dashwood make their first forays into the excitingly decadent world of eighteenth-century high society. Follow the sisters as they fall in love, make mistakes and experience heartbreak for the first time in their quest to find a balance between sense and sensibility.

A Midsummer Night’s Dream

By William Shakespeare
Chapterhouse Theatre Company presents Shakespeare's glorious romantic comedy, 'A Midsummer Night's Dream'. This magical evening is simply the best in family entertainment as flitting fairies, forest bound lovers and raucous tradesmen all join to create the perfect summer evening. With music especially written for Shakespeare's magnificent verse, lovely costumes and a splendid band of travelling players, this promises to be one of the finest evenings entertainment the summer has to offer.

 Snow White
By Laura Turner

Children and adults alike will adore this lovely new adaptation of such a familiar story, set in  some of the most beautiful gardens in the UK. Snow White is a lovely traditional fun filled show where six 1940s’ children decide to perform their own version of the tale one hot summer’s afternoon. Join the children and their special friend Milky-White the cow and a host of woodland creatures for a wonderful afternoon’s entertainment – and don’t forget to come in fancy dress for the Fairytale Parade during the interval!

My Fair Lady - Review- Whitley Bay Playhouse

My Fair Lady
Whitley Bay Playhouse
Tynemouth Amateur Operatic Society
28 Feb 2011

My Fair Lady is the simple story of a Eliza Doolittle, a humble flower girl in the heart of London trying to make her way in life. A chance encounter with Professor Higgins a leading linguist could well change her life

I last saw My Fair Lady in its less musical role as Pygmalion (REVIEW) last month in Newcastle. I was blown away by the set up, the acting and the good feeling vibe that was obvious in the audience leaving the theatre. Tonight Tynemouth Amateur Operatic Society needed to push the boundaries out to meet and match the previous amateur offerings.
In my opinion Pygmalion was flat in comparision to the bright and buzzing My Fair Lady that was served up.
The marvelous singing and the dazzling choreography (Lyndsey Harrison) as well as the fantastic sets made all of the difference.
Charlotte May as Doolittle captivated the audience with not only her superb singing voice, but her accents (the harsh Covent Garden cockney type to the stiff upper lip Queens English) were spot on. To be honest I found it hard to differentiate between her accents and the accents of the previous Doolittle in Pygmalion, which for me was brilliantly eerie. May's acting skills have lead her to audition for the Professional Musical Theatre Course, I certainly think there is a  rightful place for her.
Professor Henry Higgins was brilliantly played by Alan Davison, his rough around the edges, but caring character came through in his performance. The stage was lit up by his poise and charm. His singing voice was also very enjoyable.
Andy Dean, as the sidekick of Higgins -Colonel Pickering- gracefully made his part his own, although I am sure he succeeded with his other previous three starring roles in MFL.
The lovely designed sets took us from the Opera House in Covent Garden, to the in and outside of Higgins' study. The attention to detail was fabulous, a lot of work must have been done by Technical guys there.
Sound was adequate, from Leah McKenzie and Darren Lowe as was the lighting (also by Lowe).
Musical direction from Andrew Clarence was very precise and his musicians played their parts well in enhancing the performance.
Director Chris Johnson, who I last reviewed as part of the super NOISES OFF, has worked very hard in putting all of his breadth of experiences together and creating a fun and very enjoyable musical. Considering this was his first bash at directing a musical production, then more so that I take my hat off to him. I only hope that the public support him and their local theatre better than they did tonight, far too many empty seats spoiled what was a great evening at the theatre.
It is fitting that this TAOS opening night play is performed the day after The Oscar ceremony in America. It is touted that multi award winning actor Colin Firth is lined up to play Prof Higgins in a forthcoming rehash of the movie, he would definitely benefit from a few acting lessons off Mr Davison.

For timings and pricing please refer to my PREVIEW

The Day after this review I spoke to Chris Johnson, the director, regarding the sound and light. He is very much a perfectionist. He asked me if I would come back to re-review it at the end of the week, so he could tweak this and take this from a great review to a fantastic review.
My right hand man Noel Harris who stepped into reviewing When Harry Met Sally for me, stepped into the breach and again watched it with his review head on.
This is what Noel thought of it:-

I listened to some of the audience as they left, many people were saying that it was nothing short of professional in every way. From the acting, to the singing and through to the lighting, sound and scenery, the whole package left the audience totally gobsmacked. The complex scene changes occurred seamlessly, with none of them appearing to take more than 30 seconds.
The fast dialogue from the actors sped us through the rather long first half, and to be honest I could easily watch this show again. 
Chris Johnson has taken a place in the history of amateur theatre, and any company wanting a refreshing twist on an old favourite should really be calling him up. The TAOS is clearly succeeding in bringing old favourites into the twenty first century, whilst graciously incorporating the invaluable talent of it's senior members, both on and off the stage. Well done to them!

So it seems that Mr Johnson has tweaked his way into creating even better than what was originally on offer. The sound and the lighting which worked on the Monday -but could have definitely been better - has been bettered! All the stops seemed to have been pulled out!
I feel confident through the words of Noel, and my own viewing that is was a pretty special performance, both on and off the stage.
I cant wait for the next production that Johnson is involved with.

Michael Hunter

The Secret Garden Review, St.George's Green,Jesmond 15th July 2010

The Secret Garden Review,
St.George's Green,Jesmond

Image via Wikipedia

15th July 2010

Heartbreak Productions

The Missington & District Horticultural Exhibition of 1910 is an event for all the family, there are exotic fruit and Vegetable classes, Jam and Preserve competitions and even sporting events that will enthrall.
Who will be the conquerers? Time will tell.

Time is surreal and magic in 1910 Missington,strange things are abound.
With the wind swirling around the beautiful surroundings of St. Georges Green in Jesmond, the scene changes rapidly to the Indian home of Mary Lennox, a rather stuffy, spoilt and upper class girl, who hasn't shown any interest in life apart from how rude and unpleasant she can be to others(the real life sounds of the passing police sirens led me to believe she should have been carted away there and then).
When a cholera outbreak sweeps the area and her rather unforgiven parents die from the disease Mary is transported to England under the guardianship of her Uncle Archibald Craven.
Craven is a man who has been in deep despair for 10 years since his wife passed away, all he can do to keep some sanity is to work himself into the ground with business trips, which funds his 600 year old mansion and the lifestyle of the gentry.
Mary finds her enforced change of routine rather hard to cope with, and acts pathetically in having to deal with the day to day activities of getting on with it.
Slowly and surely though with the help of the chambermaid Mrs. Medlock, she springs into life in the gardens of the mansion and uncovers with the help of a Robin, a key to a secret garden, and the magic that lies behind the walls.
Day afer day she visits the garden and tales of torments come to life, which not only hamper the past but also the present.
Throughout the remaining time in the garden relationships with not only Mrs Medlock,her son Dickon,Mr.Craven, but also Mr. Cravens son Colin, are brought to the surface, and magic seeds of life are sown.

Heartbreak Productions under the watchful Direction of Miss Marie McCarthy, and Creative Producer Jane Holloway, have done a fantastic job of adapting Frances Hodgson Burnett's classic, bringing it to Newcastle as an open air theatre for the masses.

The Production does a wonderful job in allowing audience participation, and the many children in the audience loved the taking part, one mum even danced a silly dance on stage to the amusement of all!!!

Every inch of the stage design is wonderfully used and the atmospheric music and sounds are befitting of the lovely surroundings.

Only 5 actors brilliantly took the parts of over twenty characters, this alone in a play of over 2 hours was breathless.

Sally Brooks,Joe Herzfeld,Andrew Cullum,James Edward and Abigail Gallagher all acted with passion and determination, and I can't wait to see them in their next production.

The Secret Garden is a tale of hope and compassion, which sends out a message to all in todays society that nothing should be 'dead and buried' but given a chance-things will flourish and blossom.

To find out what secrets lie behind locked doors, head over to Jesmond until Sunday 18th July.

Spike.

I dont actually mean break a leg

Image via Wikipedia

It's just what they say on stage,when they want you to have a good time,and to make a fist of things. .

I am Spikemike,aka Michael Hunter,and this is my attempt to inform and entertain the world in my scribblings.

I have been for the past couple of years,submitting a week by week list of gigs,theatre and anything Cultural,to a North East of England Community radio programme called The Cultural Thing.
This programme is picked up by 3 local Community radio stations and it also has a slot on Ex pat internet Radio. .
The Cultural Thing

More recently my passion for getting my message across,has led me to delve into the world of interviewing,and reviewing some of the events that I am publicising.
The Cultural Thing website is in its infancy,it will be getting a revamp.
I also dont have any editorial control over that website,so this blog is purely me and my words . .
I am very excited about this venture,and will quickly pick up what is needed to get my points across.
My aims are simple- to get more people out from the rut of tv dinners, for me to enjoy the theatre and the arts,like I have done,since I saw Grease and Star Wars,back in the day

I am making more and more contacts in the Cultural world day by day,and it is very much like a 'I'll scratch your back if you scratch mine' approach to it all. .
Basically,offer me a couple of Press tickets to a ticketed event in North East England(theatre,cinema,stand up comedy,public speaking(cultural of course)) and I will review it(totally unbiased). . This will not only feature on this blog,and The Cultural Thing website,but I will also submit it to my facebook page and to the local and national press.
I would be happy to come along to final dress rehearsals,as well as 'Press Nights',would also like to continue to meet casts and directors,to see what makes them click.

I really want people to embrace what they have around them,and to enjoy stuff that isnt going to break the bank.
If I can get a few more bums on seats,by people who wouldnt normally head to Cultural events,by reading my review,then I will have achieved some of my aims. .


Cheers

Spikemike