PRATT OF THE ARGUS

Bollington Festival Players

by David Nobbs

Directed by – Diane McIntyre, Craig Harris and Richard Comish

 

This evening had a number of firsts for me. It was the first time I had seen this play, and the first time I had reviewed this playwright. It was also the first time I had been to Bollington – ever, and so it was the first time I had visited this theatre. The theatre itself is a converted old Sunday School building which has been modernised for community use, but with that scenario, it brings a number of challenges that the company must overcome. And overcome the obstacles they did, and superbly. Due to the nature of the space, and the number of community groups that use it, the set and seating must be taken down and reinstalled on a nightly basis. All credit to Richard and Luke Buck who do this, though I am sure there is a small army of other people in the company who also help. Throughout the evening I had that sense of community which comes together to produce drama productions for the public to support and enjoy.

 

The play is set in the mid-1950s and is set around Henry Pratt who has just returned back to his home in Thurmarsh, Yorkshire from National Service training. He secures employment as a journalist for the local paper and, through meeting a number of characters, 52 to be exact, he thinks he has uncovered a major scoop. Along the way this young reporter is searching for love as he goes from Thurmarsh to Twickenham, from Sienna to the Cote d’Azure.

 

The play itself is quite ambitious, with a number of scene changes that must be done quickly so that the pace of the play is not affected. Again, the stage staff executed the changes superbly well. Added to this were the brief musical interludes sung by various cast members who all got a turn. Rather than have these on digital track, Sheila Kent accompanied the performers as they sang songs of the period. The use of an overhead projector, to give an idea of what will happen in the next scene, helped us all to follow the plot. The directors, Diane McIntyre, Craig Harris and Richard Comish, obviously knew the acting space that they had available, and the exits and entrances for the array of characters. The plotting of this was quite seamless and very professional. To play in a space that does not have a proscenium arch is no easy matter, as one must be conscious of sightlines for the audience at all times.  With this production they managed this very well. I understand that the actors supplied all their character costumes, and they are to be commended for their analysis of each character, and how they envisaged them, right down to the wrinkled stockings for Cousin Hilda. All costumes had been pre-set and organised which again contributed to the flow of the piece.

 

Anthony Davies, in the role of Henry Pratt, conveyed an air of innocence of a young man who was going to embrace the adventures of youth, both in his professional and personal life. He established his character well and contributed to the dialogue delivery with good facial expression. The look of shock or surprise was clearly evident and was expressed in his eyes for the audience to see.

 

Di Gorden played a number of characters but portrayal of Cousin Hilda was excellent. Her delivery of no-nonsense dialogue to the other characters she meets made me think that we all know people like this. Her use of rise and fall in her delivery added to her character. Her rendition of Edith Piaf’s “Non je ne regretted rein” was super.

 

Richard Comish relished his roles, especially that of suave Denzil Ackerman. He had great facial expressions for all his characters, and “outrageous” vocal changes.

 

Emily Bancroft and Diane McIntyre were the love interests, among other characters, for Henry. Each switched character with ease and had created each one so that they were all different. This enabled the audience to keep track of the plotline in this pacey piece. The same is to be said for Michael Scott and Craig Harris and all added to the play’s story.

 

This was a strong cast, who all worked hard while on stage and never let their characterisation falter, and one that delivered a well-directed and pacey play. Excellent!

 

Thank you, Kathleen and Stephanie for your hospitality, and for making my first visit to Bollington such an enjoyable one.