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Stars explained: * A production of no real merit
with failings in all areas. ** A production showing evidence of not
enough time or effort, or even talent, and which never breathes any real
life into the piece – or a show lumbered with a terrible script. *** A
good enjoyable show which might have some small flaws but has largely
achieved what it set out to do.**** An excellent show which shows a
great deal of work and stage craft with no noticeable or major
flaws.***** A four star show which has found that extra bit of magic
which lifts theatre to another plane. |
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Leather, willow and very English laughs
Outside Edge Hall Green Little Theatre *** LET'S face it, we don't give a toss, even
a full one, about the scores in the cricket match with British Rail
Maintenance Department (Reading East). We don't even know the name of
the team whose players we are watching – and it doesn't matter. The Richard Harris comedy is about people, not about scoring runs and getting the other side out. It concerns the attitudes and relationships in the pavilion, which has been splendidly conceived by Edward James Stokes, rather than how many wickets are tumbling and who's scoring how many runs – though as it happens, the Saturday-night scoreboard seemed to bear little relation to what we were told was happening on the field. It was a nice touch to have the outfield
cluttered with very British litter. There could be little doubt that
this was happening in England's green and pleasant land. Such matters, however, are but the
His wife, the long-suffering Miriam (Diane
Lowry), is a joy of efficiency and mistress of the spick and span.
Discard litter in her presence, and you rapidly find yourself persuaded
to pick it up again. These are two nicely-honed performances, splendidly
shaped for maximum effect. There is a similarly pleasing pairing in Kevin
(Steve Parsons), who has hurt his spinning finger but is good at making
quiches, and big Maggie (Ros Davies), who mixes concrete and digs up
trees and whom he calls a dozy great cow. And we have a happy
cross-legged cameo from Samantha Holden, as Sharon, the daffy bimbo who
talks at an excellently-controlled rate of knots and can't get into the
loo. Linda Neale is Ginnie, disporting herself in a
sun lounger in the cause of some domestic detective work. I was glad
that she did not keep moving her lounger to follow the sun, as happened
in a production I saw many years ago, when the Ginnie of the moment
unfortunately made it clear that the sun was for some reason going
anti-clockwise. Phil Astle (Bob), James Marlow-Smith (Alex) and
Ara Sotoudeh (Dennis) also pitch in purposefully before the script
insists on its pre-ordained rain. As I have already said, this is
England. To 16-07-11. John Slim |
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trappings, the adornments of a story of love, lust, deceit and
ever-undimmed optimism. Oh, and tunnel-visioned selfish arrogance, too.
Team captain Roger (Kevin Lowry) wears it like a bespoke overcoat while
he gets his patient wife running in all directions without once spurring
her on with a please. At one point, he tells her to shut up, three times
in rapid succession, and immediately believes he has covered his tracks
by adding, “Love you.”