The Devil’s Mirror – Apollo Youth Theatre

 

By David D Ballard

A lively cast of young people aged from 8 to 16 years old from across the Isle of Wight brought their own special magic to a fantastical tale of mystery and adventure for a run of four performances, directed by Apollo Youth Theatre leader Mish Whitmore.

 

Karl Whitmore, who wrote The Devil’s Mirror and also helped design the set, realistically evokes the evil looking-glass forged from the souls of millions of demons in the fires of hell. Once shattered the scattered fragments bring chaos to the world with an endless winter.

 

“My story brings together various well-established themes about Hell, the Devil and the dark days of winter,” says Karl. “There are elements of The Snow Queen, Dante’s vision of an icy Hell, the Greek myth of Persephone and other snow-filled fantasies such as Narnia and Frozen. I am really proud of each and every one of the cast of young people. For many it is their first stage performance before a paying public. This production is a tremendous achievement for them and really demonstrates the range and complexity of all their skills and achievements.”

 

Jack Perry in the lead role of Iblis  brought vocal range and a carefully crafted performance of evil personified. He was ably supported by Khaya Mangena as a spring goddess who escapes her imprisonment in a palace of ice. The three demons - Hades Seager, Daniel Harries and Florence Cowley - made the most of their performance in the auditorium as they broke through the fourth wall and interacted confidently with the audience. 

 

When the travelling circus came to town we were all treated to a spectacular display of tightrope walking, aerial acrobatics and circus skills. Simple displays of magic revealed assured performances that invited more audience participation. Tom Howard as Kay, who disappeared in one of the many impressive circus tricks, was matched by Jess Rockhill as Gerda in the demanding role of spurned love. It was all done by members of the Apollo Youth Theatre with a real passion for developing their stagecraft and acting skills.

 

Credit should also go to the costume designer Liz Santer, and Anthony James,who made the impressive helmets and masks,  for their other-worldly creations and to Huxley Magic who helped with the close-up magic tricks.

 

For details of the Youth Theatre at The Apollo in Newport, Isle of Wight, contact Mish at apolloyouththeatre@gmail.com. or visit their Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/apolloyouththeatre

 

 

The Thrill of Love by Amanda Whittington

This thought-provoking play tells the story of Ruth Ellis, the last woman to be hanged in England. The bare facts of her crime are presented at the very start: we see Ruth dressing, preparing to go out – with a gun in her handbag. We see her wait for and then short dead her lover, David Blakely.

By then end of the play we see the jury take just 14 minutes to find her guilty of murder. Yes, the facts point to this conclusion….but this play looks at the wider picture, through the eyes of detective Jack Gale, played with understated emotion by Martin Ward. Gale hears Ruth’s confession, but one piece of her evidence in particular jars with him – where did she get the gun and travel to Hampstead to carry our the killing? Convinced there is more to learn, Gale takes his enquiries into the world Ruth inhabits: 1950s sleazy London nightclubs where the tough-as-nails Sylvia treats him with the mixture of contempt and disdain befitting her relationship with the police.

Yet Kathryn Ward as Sylvia also skilfully manages to convey the underlying tenderness she has for Ruth and her other girls, represented by Valerie / Vicki, a good time girl who acts as a foil for Ruth. Abbi Leverton sparkles as the young woman dreaming of stardom and money…a false dream for her as well as Ruth.

The nightclub’s cleaner Doris shows us a more ‘normal’ reality as she hopes for nothing more than marriage and children, but as she befriends, and hero-worships, Ruth, even she is caught up in their world. Susan Simpson delights as Doris, managing to inject some humour to counterpoint Ruth’s story.

However, the success of the play rests mainly on the mesmerising performance of Holly Squires as Ruth, taking us from her struggles as a single mother through her own personal hell of alcoholism, abortions, miscarriages and domestic abuse that finally drove her to the murder she was convicted of.

A minimalist set and use of backdrop film and Billie Holliday music provided the atmosphere of 1950s London, and the costumes were beautifully chosen for the characters. The final question was left to us, the audience to answer: given what we learn in the play, who was really to blame for the murder of David Blakely? My advice is - see the show and draw your own conclusions.

The Thrill of Love is staged at the Apollo Theatre, Newport from Tuesday 18th – Saturday 22nd February; tickets available at https://www.apollo-theatre.org.uk/the-thrill-of-love/ Or by calling the Box Office on 01983 2010010. But hurry – seats are selling fast!

Jeeves and Wooster in Perfect Nonsense - The Apollo Players

‘Team Nonsense’ is the title used by Fiona Gwinnett, director of the Apollo Players’ latest show, to describe the close-knit team who once again have put on a remarkable production at the Apollo Theatre.

And what a triumph for all involved!  The play, ‘Perfect Nonsense’, is an adaptation by the Goodall brothers of a number of PG Wodehouse’s ‘Jeeves and Wooster’ novels.  The storylines will be familiar to Wodehouse fans: the stolen cow-creamer, the policeman’s helmet on Boat Race night, the dreadful Madeleine Bassett and the otherworldly Gussie Fink-Nottle – all appear in the play, and every one of the characters, including of course Bertram Wooster himself, is played by a virtuoso cast of three.  Joel Leverton, Robbie Gwinnett and Peter Harris between them moved seamlessly from role to role – in one case simultaneously, as Robbie Gwinnett played a conversation between two characters by turning first his right side, wearing a gentlemen’s tweed suit, and then his left, clad in a flowing ladies’ dress, to the audience.

Fiona Gwinnett’s use of the word ‘team’ was absolutely borne out by this production.  The Players specialise in ensemble work, and this was no exception.  The set was a masterpiece of the set-builder’s art, comprising as it did a revolve – seemingly rotated by one of the characters leaping on a bicycle – and three separate sets, painted in effective trompe-l’oeuil.  The wardrobe department as usual excelled themselves, as the actors became first one character and then another in faultless 1920s outfits, and the lighting and sound team were spot on with the multiple and complex changes of scene.

But the abiding memory taken away by all the audiences was of absolute hilarity.  We were breathless with laughter as Peter Harris, as the very elderly butler Butterfield, tottered across the stage; as Bertie Wooster got almost inextricably entangled in his braces; as Jeeves morphed into Madeleine Bassett through the judicious use of a lampshade and a pink silk scarf ... the list could go on.  Sadly the show is now over, but it was a piece of wonderful ‘nonsense’.


Robbie Gwinnett, Joel Leverton and Pete Harris in just one of their guises in ‘Perfect Nonsense’.
Photo by Paul Jennings

Suddenly At Home by Francis Durbridge – The Apollo Players

Graham Pountney, Carol Simpson and Helen Reading in a scene from ‘Suddenly At Home’.
Photo by Paul Jennings


Audiences at the Apollo were treated to a classic Durbridge suspense-filled thriller: not so much a whodunnit, more a ‘willhegetawaywithit’ with added plot twists and surprises along the way. So I will try not to spoil any of those surprises, since the play runs until Saturday 14th September, giving you a chance to see for yourself.

Suffice it to say that Glenn Howard, a womanising charmer married to the conveniently very rich Maggie, has a somewhat devious mind. The plot against Maggie becomes evident very quickly, as we meet her friend Sheila and innocent sister Helen.

Anyone who has been involved in theatre will know that at times there is as much drama unfolding offstage as on, and this has clearly been the case for the Apollo Players who were faced with the rare problem of an actor unavoidably having to withdraw from the show – and the lead role too! Happily, the role of Glenn was filled by Graham Pountney, a familiar name on the Island, and he captures Glenn’s ability to charm everyone into either entering into the plot with him or believing he could never have carried out such a crime. If you did not know the Apollo team you might have thought having a professionally trained actor of over 40 years’ experience onstage would make the rest of the cast look like, well, amateurs – but not a bit of it! The newcomer fits seamlessly into the play and the other actors shine even brighter for it.

Chris Turvey brings out the character of Maggie, sociable and unsuspecting of her husband’s intentions, and Holly Squires as Helen skilfully enables the audience to identify with her as she, like us, gradually realises that things in the Howard household are not quite what they seem, and she struggles to understand and come to terms with what has happened.

Helen Reading portrays the complex character of Sheila perfectly: without giving too much away I can only say that as each aspect of Sheila’s character unfolds, Helen’s acting experience and talent ensures that the audience are captivated by what she might do next….

Equally skilful at showing different sides of a character is Carol Simpson as the au pair Ruth, while another character about whom we may change our mind during the play is Sam Blaine, Maggie’s ex, played with understated threat by Nick Turvey.

The cast is completed by two policemen – or are they? Certainly Inspector Appleton (Garry Smith) thinks he’s in charge of the investigation, but Remick (Mark Duffus) also has some searching questions to ask.

However, like every character in this complex thriller, they may not be exactly what they seem – and if you think you can predict the final twists in the plot, you are in for a surprise as well as an evening of great entertainment!

Suddenly At Home is staged at the Apollo Theatre, Pyle Street, Newport from Tuesday 10th – Saturday 14th September, curtain up 7.30pm. Tickets available from the website at https://www.apollo-theatre.org.uk/suddenly-at-home/ or from the Box Office on 01983 210010.
But hurry – tickets are selling fast!

In conversation with Graham Pountney

As we are lucky enough to have professional actor Graham Pountney as a 'guest' actor in our next production, 'Suddenly At Home', we took the opportunity of asking him a few questions...

                                    Graham Pountney onstage as Glenn in 'Suddenly At Home'.

Could you tell us a bit about your acting career and links to the Island?

My parents first brought me here when I was three. Then we came every summer, my folks building their retirement home here. Now they have passed on, my sons come down too!

I have been followed for approx forty years by the County Press who reported my graduating from Bristol Old Vic drama School in the 70s. I was a regular character  in the BBC TV series Howards Way, shot in the Hamble.

Recently I brought to life two Anthony Minghella plays at the Quay Arts Minghella Theatre in June; and an evening of Alan Bennett plays the year before - I toured Richard II and Edward II to The Ventnor Fringe in 2017; and presented my solo show as Charles I in Carisbrooke Castle last year too!

Is this the first time you have acted at the Apollo Theatre? 

Not exactly - I rehearsed my audition speeches for drama school on the stage in 1973!  Otherwise, yes

Without giving too much away, can you tell us a bit about ‘Suddenly At Home’ and your character?

Glenn is a charmer ... he wants to better his life, and subtly resents his wife having more cash than him, and the way she wants to spend it and live her life.  He decides there's a way to better himself on his own terms.  The play's about him attempting to do that - but other people get in the way

What made you agree to be part of this play?

I was asked! - and I've also been discussing with the Apollo about bringing a play to the Theatre with my company next year - and it seemed a great way to get to know everyone, and enjoy entertaining audiences too.

What would you say to anyone thinking of coming to see it?

Be prepared to have your ideas changed - nothing is quite what it seems in the play, and the tension is tangible.  A great night out!

'Suddenly At Home' by Francis Durbridge is staged at the Apollo Theatre for 7 nights from Friday 6 September (not Sunday or Monday). Tickets can be obtained from our website at  https://www.apollo-theatre.org.uk/suddenly-at-home/ or by phoning our Box Office on
01983 210010

Natural Causes by Eric Chappell – The Apollo Players

The first – but by no means only – wonderful thing I noticed about ‘Natural Causes’ was the set: the talented team at the Apollo have brought to life in every detail the book-lined study of a faded intellectual, personified in the character of Walter Bryce who, as the play begins, is very anxiously playing host to an eccentric individual named – or perhaps not – Vincent Vincent. The latter, it appears, despite his lack of education (“did I tell you I left school at the age of fourteen?”) and background, has the wherewithal to administer a potion inducing death almost immediately with no trace – the victim will appear to have died from ‘Natural Causes’.

You would expect a black comedy based on such a premise, from the pen of the writer of such hits as ‘Rising Damp’ to have twists, turns, miscommunication and plenty of laughs, and indeed the script delivers all this and more. 

But the real success of this production rests on the portrayal of each character, and the direction behind it. And director Martin Ward can feel very proud of his work and his team. Steve Reading plays Walter to perfection – nervous yet ready to go through with his dastardly plan which seems to be thwarted at every turn, somehow gaining our sympathy with his predicament. Helen Reading portrays his ‘secretary’ Angie with a Lady Macbeth level of persuasion and taunting: she at least is fully determined to get the outcome she wants.

Kathryn Ward, as Walter’s devoted wife Celia, skilfully gives us a character we simultaneously empathise with – and want to see dead, and David Carr’s Samaritan Withers is suitably fluttery in the face of possible suicide and bewildered by the confusion he encounters as he tries to prevent what Vincent tries to accomplish.

Vincent himself, played with a lovely mixture of confidence and confusion by Steve Taverner, appears to have the whole situation under control – after all, he’s ‘helped’ so many people, and there’s another client in Slough just waiting to die…..but as it turns out, he just might have to wait a bit longer. 

To say more would spoil the plot for those who come along to The Apollo next week to see the show: and I really recommend that you do  – it is staged from Tuesday 21st to Saturday 25th May inclusive, curtain up 7.30pm. Expect hilarity, confusion – and a lot of plot twists along the way, all of which make for a most entertaining evening!

Tickets are available via the Apollo website at https://www.apollo-theatre.org.uk/natural-causes/ Or can be reserved by calling 01983 210010.

The Weir by Conor McPherson

As soon as you enter the auditorium for the Apollo Players’ latest show, you’re in for a treat: the hugely talented set design crew have surpassed themselves in reproducing a rural Irish pub. From the flickering peat stove, to the beer pulls that look as if they have produced countless pints of Guinness and lager, to the hay bales in the adjoining barn, the stage is quite literally set for an evening in Brendan’s cosy bar.

Brendan, played with understated humour by Robbie Gwinnett, is resigned to his apparent lot as host to his regulars, and we feel that we are witnessing a typical evening as grumpy Jack (Colin Ford) comes in and helps himself to a drink, complaining about the malfunctioning tap and putting his money in the till. The general banter between the two reflects local life, and they are joined by Michael Arnell’s gently spoken Jimmy, who has ‘got more going on’ in his head ‘than popular opinion would give him credit for’.

So far, so usual, until the conversation turns to a newcomer in the village – a rare event, we surmise – and a woman too, who is renting a house from Finbar, a local married man who, to his friends’ mix of scorn and jealousy, appears to be escorting her around the area.

When we meet Finbar and Valerie the dynamic changes, with the men vying for her attention by relating anecdotes which invoke the ancient spirit of old Ireland with its tales of fairy folk and the supernatural. David Vince’s Finbar dominates the pub and the stage – we learn that he has moved out of the area and returned, and both he and Valerie, played by Ginnie Orrey, have a veneer of sophistication lacked by the others. This gives rise to some humour when she throws Brendan into turmoil by asking for a glass of wine and to use the Ladies’ – the lack of female companionship in the men’s lives is thrown into sharp relief here.

It is a very difficult task to sustain a strong accent such as that of rural Ireland throughout a play, and the cast are to be congratulated on their efforts; however, these accents and the very Irish dialect words and cadences of speech did at times make the dialogue difficult to follow – I note that even professional productions of the play have made use of native Irish speakers, which reflects this difficulty.

That said, the men’s anecdotes build towards the sharply real and tragic story that Valerie has to tell, and in the final scene one is left wondering whether the younger characters’ lives will follow the empty pattern of the older men or whether there is a glimmer of hope for something more.

The Weir will be staged every evening from Tuesday 2nd April to Saturday 5th April, curtain up 7.30pm. Tickets are available from the Apollo website at https://www.apollo-theatre.org.uk/the-weir/ Or from the box office on 01983 210010.

Brontë by Polly Teale

Fiona Gwinnett, Abbi leverton and Susan Simpson as Charlotte, Emily and Anne Brontë- photograph by Ian Johnston LRPS

The first thing a regular Apollo visitor notices on entering the auditorium for a performance of Brontë is the stage – it’s not where it has been for over forty years! In order to enhance the intimate atmosphere of the play, director Di Evans has chosen to present it in a traverse format, necessitating a good deal of shifting around of seating and the creation of a whole new stage. A lot of work - but well worth it, because the audience do feel emotionally in touch with the lives of the characters.

Brontë is a difficult play to stage, shifting as it does between timeframes and requiring each actor to portray more than one character, some real, some fictional. Yet the production absorbed me from the start, as modern day visitors to Haworth transform into the literary family and we are plunged into the middle of their story.

Branwell, the sole male sibling, on whom rests the hopes and expectations of his father and sisters for the reputation of the family, is perfectly played by Chris Hicks, who brings out Branwell’s weaknesses, vulnerability and anger; we can sympathise with the pressure he is under yet condemn his behaviour – the scene in which he physically assaults Charlotte is particularly shocking. Teale’s commentary on Victorian views of men and women is still relevant today – Branwell has the advantages and opportunities denied to his sisters because of their gender, and he wastes them.

Peter Gale, playing a range of roles, including Patrick Brontë, with aplomb, shows true skill in convincingly portraying completely  different people and ensuring we always know who he is and how we feel about him.

The role of Charlotte, the eldest and longest surviving sister, is in the experienced hands of Fiona Gwinnett, who gives us a real insight into the turmoil of her mind: never still, never quiet, never satisfied with the domestic lot of her life. We empathise as we see her rich creativity develop as a young girl and as she matures we witness her determination to find an outlet for her writing and find a way out of the lonely life to which she is condemned.

Emily, apparently quieter and more domesticated but in reality just as frustrated with the emptiness of household chores and caring for her father, is portrayed by Abbi Leverton, who conveys perfectly the vulnerability, love of nature and innate passion that leads Emily to write as an escape from the dreariness of her life. The scene in which she is horrified by Charlotte’s ‘outing’ her as a female writer after being published under a male pseudonym is heart wrenching, as is her death.

The youngest and least known sister, Anne, is played engagingly by Susan Simpson. He anguish at being away from home as a governess and her gentle nature, often caught as peacemaker between her siblings, is powerfully acted.

The real power of the play though, highlighted by the talent and skill of the direction and acting, centres on the isolation and repression of the three sisters, which finds its outlet in the characters of their imagination; Bertha and Cathy (from Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights respectively) are superbly portrayed by Maria Wilkinson, and represent the inner passions of their characters’ creators perfectly, in words and, so often, in silent action.

Despite its setting in the real life of famous people over 150 years ago, this play still has plenty to say about the human condition and the effect of social pressure today. It is a piece which will emotionally engage you and evoke thought and discussion long after you have left the theatre.

Brontë runs from Tuesday 12 through to Saturday 16 February, curtain up 7.30pm – if you enjoy theatre which makes you think and gives you a different experience then don’t miss it!

Tickets available from the Box Office on 01983 210010 or via the website at http://www.apollo-theatre.org.uk/bronte/

Historic Changes at The Apollo

The stage area starts to take shape......

.......and almost ready for the actors!

Having been chosen as the Director of Bronte, Di Evans read it through to get a feel of how it might be staged.  The script contains few stage directions and no suggestions for the set.  One night when working in the theatre she admitted that she was having trouble visualising it. In fact she said that the only way it seemed to work in her head was “in the round”.  As it happened there were enough people within in ear shot who agreed that was totally possible.  

The Apollo has operated for nearly 47 years as a conventional proscenium arch style theatre exactly as it was conceived by our founder John Hancock.  Occasionally we have installed the odd forestage to bring the action closed to the audience but we have always preformed with the actors facing the audience.   However theatres built in the last 60 years (for example the Olivier and Chichester) often situate the audience on 2 or even 3 sides of the performance.  Some (the Exchange in Sheffield) surround the stage with seating bringing the cast and audience into a very close relationship.

The Apollo does not allow us to achieve a complete “in the round” arrangement but we felt it quite possible to convert it to provide what is known as a traverse stage, sometimes employed when preforming drama in churches.  The audience is divided into two groups who are seated facing each other with the acting area in between.  It all seemed very simple: move the front two rows onto the stage and place the actors in the space between the front of the stage and the third row.  

Given the sight lines from the balcony it was agreed that for this production we would not sell seats there and to compensate we would add a third row on stage.  All the seats on the stage would be raked, as they are in the auditorium, to maintain good visibility.  It was obviously vital that health and safety was maintained including access and egress for the audience both able bodied and those in wheelchairs.  So a three dimensional computer model was created so that all interested parties could visualise the end result and rehearsals were started based on the floor area available.  

However and as if to prove that computers aren’t the total answer, some members of the Bronte cast were at the last night of The Vicar of Dibley and when at the end of the play Geraldine went down into the auditorium to retrieve the bouquet, they realised that visibility was not very good.  It was therefore decided that the acting area needed to be raised.  Now this is easy to say but involves quite a lot of construction.  A structure had to be built 18 inches (.45M) high over an area of 12ft by 22ft (3.6Mx 6.7M).  It also had to be usable as quickly as possible so that normal use of the theatre could continue.  

After two works nights the Dibley set had been struck (dismantled) and the seats moved to the stage leaving the acting area available for rehearsal albeit at the wrong height.  The following week work started on creating the raised area and with a combination of careful planning and sudden bursts of inspiration a usable stage was ready for rehearsals after two nights.  It now only remains to make sure the auditorium is safely accessible and to build the seating on stage. Rehearsals on the set appear to going well and hopefully Di’s visualisation is turning into reality.  

Paul Jennings

The Vicar of Dibley - The Apollo Players

The Apollo’s December production is, unlike most current shows, nothing to do with Christmas, but its subject matter is almost as familiar as the nativity story to those over a certain age, as the script is derived from various episodes of the hugely popular TV series of the same name, cleverly stitched together to form a coherent storyline taking us from the Vicar’s arrival in Dibley up to the wedding of Alice and Hugo.

With such a script, the show cannot help but amuse, but the generous amount of laughter evident on the first night was just as much due to the quality of the actors on stage. Sensibly, each character was re-created by its actor rather than trying to perform a carbon copy of the original TV cast.

Thus, we had a tall, dapper but characteristically pedantic Frank Pickle, played with understated skill by David Carr, sitting at the parish council table alongside no,no,no,no…yes – Mike Groves’ bumbling Jim, who excelled in the scene where he practised his wedding speech. The role of challenged cook and flower arranger Letitia Cropley was in the safe, experienced hands of Helen Clinton-Pacey, and equally professional was Simon Lynch playing Owen Newitt, the farmer obsessed with the bowel movements of his cows. The brief appearance of some, er, rather aged twelve year olds, played by Carole Crow, Dave Talbot, Maggie Cardew, Maureen Sullivan and Lucy Benton added to the fun.

Steve Reading as David Horton dominated the council meetings and the stage, which made his softening towards the end all the more emotional, while the intellectually challenged couple, Hugo and Alice were both superbly portrayed by Matt Osborne and Carol Simpson. Their onstage chemistry was hilarious, and the costume department is to be congratulated on the confection that was the wedding dress!

Each character had their own moment of hilarity but it was of course Geraldine, played by Hebe Gregory who held the whole show together, and the audience loved and laughed along with her from the moment she exploded on to the stage to the last poignant moment when David asks her to stay in the parish.

The dual set, with the parish hall on one side of the stage and the vicar’s home on the other were superbly designed and enabled slick scene changes, necessary in this episodic piece, moving the story along effectively.

All in all, if you have tickets for the rest of the run, you are in for a real treat – but beware, you may end up with sore sides from laughing. If you don’t have a ticket, the run is sold out, but it may be worth calling the theatre just in case of a cancellation. The show runs from Tuesday 11th to Saturday 15th December, curtain up 7.30pm.

"How many of you have managed to get tickets for the show then?"

The cast of The Vicar of Dibley - photo credit Paul Jennings

‘The Private Ear’ and ‘The Public Eye’ - Peter Shaffer

It was a pleasure to see the always enterprising Apollo Theatre Players tackle a rarely performed double bill by the late Peter Shaffer, ‘The Private Ear’ and ‘The Public Eye’.

These early plays – written in the early 1960s – were to a certain extent dated, with Shaffer rather self-consciously using terms like ‘groovy’ and ‘dig’ to demonstrate the extent to which he was down with the cats. However, the Shafferian theme of the conflict between reason and passion, though it wasn’t fully developed until his more mature plays, was already evident.

The first play, ‘The Private Ear’, is the slighter of the two, as the lonely and socially awkward Bob asks his swaggering, philistine friend Ted to help him out after he invites Doreen, whom he has met at a classical concert, to dinner at his flat. Mark Duffus gave a very good rendition of Bob’s awkwardness and his sadness as his attempts to share his passion for classical music with the largely unresponsive Doreen went over her head. Amy Burns made what she could out of the character of Doreen – think ‘Saturday Night and Sunday Morning’ out of ‘Billy Liar’ – but her rejection of Bob was believable and gave the play the pathos it needed. Martin Ward, playing against type as the flash and amoral Ted, gave a suitably louche performance; the contrast between his style and Bob’s – loud waistcoat vs beige slipover – was nicely brought out and Mark’s despair as (once again, we feel) Ted gets the girl was gentle and moving.

‘The Public Eye’ was an altogether meatier play. Charles, a buttoned-up accountant, suspects his wife, Belinda, of infidelity and employs a private detective to follow her. The text gave all the cast something to get their teeth into: Mark Duffus once again excelled as the detective, Julian, and Martin Ward was clearly more comfortable in the role of Charles, with his horrified disbelief that his wife could be acting so against the principles he has endeavoured to instil in her – which is, of course, the whole problem. Amy Burns gave the role of Belinda a lovely energy and focus, to contrast with Charles’ tight uprightness, and the contrast between all the characters was well brought out.

The cast are to be congratulated on their grasp of two very different characters each and a very significant number of lines, and the production rarely faltered. The sets were excellently realised and cleverly constructed, with the use of a swinging wall to transform Bob’s ‘trendy’ bedsit into Charles’ grey and brown office, and the wardrobe department excelled in bringing out the individuals’ characters. Overall, an excellent production, and one on which the Apollo Players should be congratulated.

Contributed by Ginnie Orrey


Martin Ward, Amy Burns and Mark Duffus take their bows!

It Could Be Any One Of Us by Alan Ayckbourn

We’re all familiar with the elements of the classic ‘whodunit’ – a murder victim; several possible suspects each with their own motives for committing the crime, and at the centre, a detective who successfully eradicates all the red herrings and announces to the company in the denouement just who ‘did it’ and why. Add in some strange offstage noises and a thunder storm and – well, you get the idea.

Ayckbourn has taken this formula and shaken it up – quite a lot. For the whole of Act 1 there are at least two possible victims, and the murder itself does not happen until just before the interval. By then we are familiar with the characters and the setting, and the audience are then asked to choose their murderer, thus, it could be said, doing the detective’s work for him.

And the detective, would-be private investigator Norris Honeywell, portrayed  with verve by Nick Turvey, certainly needs some help – Poirot he ain’t! Even with the ‘help’ of the audience, his efforts to identify the culprit in Act 2 are.. well, interesting.

Norris is not the only failure in the house – far from it. He is living there on sufferance, only because of his partner Jocelyn, played by Nick’s real life wife Chris Turvey. Jocelyn is a failed writer who explains that her mother had artistic aspirations for all her three children, which has resulted in each of them trying – and failing – in different artistic disciplines. This has not stopped her having similar aspirations for her own daughter Amy (a beautifully sullen and angry Ellen Lamplough), who has responded by evading her dance and drama classes in favour of spending her time...eating.

The house is owned by Jocelyn’s elder brother Mortimer. Michael Arnell, in the role of Mortimer, owns not only the house but the stage, every time he walks on: he dominates his family, as well he might, since the estate has been left to him to bequeath ‘as he thinks fit’, and he announces therefore that on his death the whole family will be disinherited in favour of an ex-pupil of his who he hasn’t seen for twenty years. Cue classic whodunit motivational set up.

The final member of the household is Mortimer and Jocelyn’s younger brother Brinton, whose particular failure is painting – and growing up. John Abraham’s Brinton is a comic delight, from his tantrum over his studio’s leaking roof to his childish infatuation with Wendy, the ex-pupil heiress who he remembers watching during her lessons and who has been the sole subject of his art ever since, and his confused reactions to the present day Wendy.

For Wendy is no longer the nubile young girl Brinton remembers – she is now a middle aged dowdy housewife with three children and a pet shop, whose life’s ambition is to breed King Charles spaniels. Maria Wilkinson, as Wendy, almost steals the show with her perfect portrayal of sheer down at heel ordinariness against the other eccentric characters, and a highlight of the play is her nervously singing nursery rhymes while Norris investigates apparent noises in the house.

A mention needs to be made here of the superb set which captures the once wealthy and now fading fortunes of the Chalke family, the costumes which help us identify the characters, from Mortimer’s cravat and Jocelyn’s arty skirts to Amy’s tracksuit. The sound and lighting, often forgotten, are also timed perfectly and add hugely to the atmosphere, as does the incidental music which was specifically composed for the Dick & Lottie Theatre Company production of the show in 2017.

By the end of the play Norris thinks he knows the culprit – but whether he agrees with the audience, who are in charge of the choice of one of three possible endings – and indeed, who the murderer is (and the victim!) are all things you will have to see the play to find out – so come along for an entertaining evening!

It Could Be Any One Of Us is at the Apollo Theatre from Tuesday 4^th to Saturday 8^th September; tickets available at http://www.apollo-theatre.org.uk/it-could-be-any-one-of-us/ or on the door.

The cast of It Could Be Any One Of Us: left to right: John Abraham, Maria Wilkinson, Nick Turvey, Chris Turvey, Michael Arnell and Ellen Lamplough

Lord Arthur Savile’s Crime

Photo shows Chris Hicks, Simon Cardew, Martin Ward, Rose Kelsey and Ginnie Orrey in a scene from 'Lord Arthur Savile's Crime. Photo courtesy of Paul Jennings.

Audiences at the latest Apollo Players’ production are in for a visual treat: the set perfectly depicts a late Victorian upper class drawing room with all the accoutrements, and the costumes are not only suited to the period, down to the last detail, but tell us something about each character too.

Lord Arthur Savile, portrayed engagingly by Chris Hicks, is not blessed with brains, but is devoted to his lovely fiancée Sybil Merton, played by Rose Kelsey with great comic timing. When her disapproving mother, a wonderfully dour Ginnie Orrey, hires a chiromancer – no, I didn’t know what it was either, but it turns out he is a kind of palm-reading fortune teller – to ensure Arthur is a suitable husband, the latter’s world is turned upside down by the private information that he is doomed to commit a murder.

Heroically – at least in his own eyes – determining to get the evil deed out of the way before his wedding the following Thursday, Arthur consults his loyal butler Baines, played with a traditional stiff upper lip by Martin Ward, and together they plot to kill one of Arthur’s own long list of relatives. The question is who? And how?

Should it be elderly Aunt Clem, with her habit of borrowing money from her nephew to fund her gambling, and her hypochondria, or the haughty and at times disapproving Lady Windermere? These ladies, played to perfection by consummate actresses Carole Crow and Kathryn Ward respectively, are at times on the verge of stealing the show with their sweeping entrances and amusing asides.

Then there is the Dean of Paddington, Arthur’s uncle, played with suitable eccentricity by Mark Duffus.

The plot is further complicated by the well-meaning help offered by Herr Winkelkopf, portrayed by Simon Cardew with aplomb. And a bomb.

The cast is completed by Helen Reading’s submissive maid, Nellie, and John Sole’s solemn chiromancer himself, Mr Podgers, who turns out to be not all he seems...

This black comedy, based on an Oscar Wilde short story, with all of Wilde’s characteristic wit, will keep you guessing and laughing right to the end.

Lord Arthur Savile’s Crime is staged at The Apollo Theatre every evening until Saturday 7^th July. Tickets available via the Apollo website or from the Box Office.

‘Entertaining Angels’ – The Apollo Players

From the moment this play began we knew we were in for something a little different: with the curtain still closed, a kindly gentleman dressed in white carried a basket of flowers around the auditorium, offering blooms to various members of the audience. The ethereal air was heightened as he stepped up onstage as the curtains opened and promptly vanished into a greenhouse stage right.

A complete change of atmosphere brought the main character, Grace, onstage, in the middle of a telephone conversation which served to establish the humour of the situation and introduce the other characters who variously interrupted Grace’s conversation until she gave up in despair.

We quickly learned that Grace was newly widowed and felt her home had been invaded by her sister Ruth, over from missionary duties in Uganda to support her; daughter Jo, clearly concerned for her, and new incumbent of the parish of which Grace’s husband Bardolph had been vicar – and new resident to be of the vicarage. No wonder Grace feels beset!

Di Evans excelled in the central role and made the most of the witty script, from enumerating the number of cups of tea she has poured and tons of shortcrust pastry she has made as the traditional vicar’s wife, to her acerbic comment at the end when reminded of the Children of Israel’s forty years’ wandering in the desert: ‘That’s because the men were in charge’.

Di was ably supported by Amy Burns as her psychotherapist daughter, happy to take on the problems and issues of the world but unable to objectively assess her own relationship failures. She counselled new vicar Sarah, played beautifully by Sue Edwards, haunted by her own secrets and troubles from the past.

Helen Clinton Pacey as Ruth was by turns hilarious and deeply moving, as the buried secret of her relationship with Grace’s husband thirty years before surfaced. The scenes where the sisters were forced to address, not just the infidelity but the fact that neither Ruth nor Bardolph had told Grace  of this, were heart-rending, and we completely understood both viewpoints.

Bardolph, or Bardy, himself, played with perfect understatement by Danny Carmichael, proved to be the kindly gentleman we had met at the start, and he appeared frequently through the show to talk to Grace as she struggled to come to terms with his loss. Some of the most poignant scenes, including Grace remembering times with Bardy, took place down by a stream at the bottom of the garden.

The separation of these settings, and indeed the setting and lighting in general, was an integral part of the success of this play, and as much praise should go to those who designed and built the set and managed the amazingly subtle lighting effects – I loved the dappled lighting representing the stream – as to those on stage.

The tone of the play shifted from laugh out loud comedy to subtle reflection and thought-provoking drama as the storyline progressed, but it never lost its pace nor its ability to find humour in the darkest of situations. The core of its message is voiced by Grace when she notes that people are never destroyed by truth – it’s lies that are so dangerous and hurtful. Yet the play ends on a positive note: months later, new vicar Sarah is happily pregnant and Grace and her family are off to meet the son Ruth has kept hidden for so long. Redemption, and healing, are seen to be possible, and Grace is finally able to let Bardy go in peace.

Well done to all involved in this production, from the actors and backstage folk to the front of house volunteers – the audience had a real treat of a show!

 The amazing setting for the show

Helen Clinton Pacey, Danny Carmichael, Di Evans, Amy Burns and Sue Edwards taking a 

well-deserved curtain call!

Entertaining Angels - an actor's tale...

Being in a play is always exciting, but being in a play with an new author to the theatre and having a new director to the players adds an extra challenge and excitement. When I first read Entertaining Angels by Richard Everett. I loved the characterization and interaction of them all, each part has funny lines, emotional scenes and equal amount of time to spend telling their stories. I went to the audition with a hope that I may be considered and Julie Stonestreet, our director, gave me the part over the others that read. and I was ready for the challenge of bring Jo to life. 

Jo is the daughter of Grace and Rev Bardolph Thomas, the play takes place in the garden of the vicarage where Jo is making herself useful to her mother at this sad time. Jo is a psychotherapist and is always there with a helping hand to everyone. but as the play goes on Jo struggles somewhat to know who to help first. I have really enjoyed playing Jo. She is caring and understanding, and uses her anger for life to ensure everyone else is happy. 

I have loved having Danny Carmichael and Di Evans as parents, they are two amazing actors that I have (In the past) and this play learnt so much from. Helen Clinton Pacey plays my Dear Batty Aunt Ruth. She as always has been fun to work along side. and i have seen different side or her acting ability in this production. The final member of our cast is Sue Edwards, who plays the new vicar Sarah. I have directed Sue in the past, but this is the first time I have acted along side her in a production and I have loved it and look forward to working with her again very soon. 

Julie has been a great director, she has had some great ideas and has really pulled the characters out of the script, getting the best of the emotion and characters across to the audience. I hope that Julie has enjoyed this as much as I have and I look forward to working with her again in the future. I hope that you will come and watch the production, and enjoy it as much as I have.

Don’t Dress for Dinner – The Apollo Players

The play is billed as a ‘side-splitting comedy’ and the audience which packed the Apollo on Saturday evening would not disagree with that – there was continual giggling punctuated with bursts of loud hilarity and at a couple of points, spontaneous applause during the performance.

If audience approval is not enough to convince you to come and see this traditional farce, I would cite the clever script which twists and turns so that at times even the audience can start to lose track of who is pretending to be whom, and for what purpose – let alone the poor characters. ‘I’ve never been so many people, having so many affairs with so many different men in one night,’ laments Suzette, played beautifully by Rose Kelsey. ‘It’s nice being so popular....’

The basic premise is that Bernard (Steve Taverner) intends to take advantage of his wife Jacqueline’s absence over a weekend to host a little soiree of his own – the first problem is that she finds out he has hired a caterer, forcing him to ‘admit’ he has invited his best mate Robert over – which strangely provokes Jacqueline to cancel her visit to her mother – but why?

The second problem is that two women, called respectively Suzanne and Suzette, arrive – and are confused with each other by the hapless Robert, played with aplomb by Pete Harris: his “explanation” of what has gone wrong towards the end of the show is one of the highlights and is a testament to his ability to master a long and involved speech.

Suzanne, played by Nessa Law, initially strikes one as the archetypal bimbo, but she too has more to her than at first appears, especially her reaction at being pressed into service to cook the dinner.

Steve Taverner’s Bernard is suitably perplexed and frustrated as events spiral out of his control; he handles several slapstick comic moments and has to change shirts so often he runs out! Chris Turvey’s Jacqueline is a lovely foil for her stage husband, at once the suspicious wife and the schemer with secrets of her own.

The plot climaxes with the arrival of George, the husband of someone – but no one quite seems to know who. John Abraham, as George, exudes the appropriate level of aggression. ‘Is she finished?’ he asks, referring to his wife. ‘I think we’re all finished!’ exclaims Robert.

If you fancy a good laugh and an entertaining evening, ‘Don’t Dress for Dinner’ plays each evening from Tuesday 6^th to Saturday 10^th February inclusive, curtain up at 7.30pm.

Tickets are available from http://www.apollo-theatre.org.uk/dont-dress-for-dinner/ - but get them quickly – they are selling out fast! 

The cast of 'Don't Dress for Dinner - suitably attired....

Going Straight by Richard Harris – The Apollo Players

‘Old villains may retire....’, reads the strapline for this play, currently on stage at The Apollo, ‘but are they going straight?’ In true thriller fashion, we don’t find out the full answer to this question until the last scene, and I’m not giving it away here. Suffice to say, there are more twists and turns on the way than most of the audience will have foreseen. Even my husband, usually the first in a guess the plot contest, predicted the ending wrongly.

Mickey has invited his old partner in crime Ray to stay in his swanky Spanish villa. Clearly there has been a rift in their relationship but now Mickey is keen to renew old ties. Reuben Loake’s Mickey is perfectly played, at times understated, at times openly conceited but with an undertone of controlling aggression that surfaces every now and then.  I have seen Ian Moth in many roles, often playing the charming urbane gent, but his portrayal of Ray shows his range of acting skills –  a bundle of nerves, with a hint of the East-End villain swagger.

Sue Edwards, as Mickey’s glamorous second wife Francine, manages to retain an air of superiority while spitting venom at her guests, but there is a hint of vulnerability in her portrayal which saves her from being an unsympathetic character. The main target for her disdain is Brenda, played by Fiona Gwinnett, whose performance threatens at times to steal the show, even from the other talent on stage, but she too has her vulnerable point, as we discover towards the end.

If there is a criticism of ‘Going Straight’ it is that the first half of the script has a lot of talking and less action in it – this is fully redressed in the second half, but in less skilful hands it could start rather slowly. The great characterisation of every role however keeps us interested, from the ‘old lags’ reminiscing about the past to the bitchy rivalry of their respective spouses.

The mystery really starts when Polly, played wonderfully by Susan Simpson, arrives to interview the two men for a Channel 4 documentary. From this point the questions about who is really doing what behind the scenes take off.

And talking of behind the scenes, no review of this play could be complete without a mention of the amazing technical wizardry emanating from the specially constructed sound and lighting system – set up in the balcony because it just wouldn’t all fit in the usual ‘box’. Dan Burns has excelled himself: absolutely spot on cue were not just doorbells and phones ringing, but offstage Spanish conversations and videos on Mickey’s state of the art CCTV screen – rewinding, playing back scenes we had just witnessed on the stage and apparently off-screen action, including Mickey driving off in a (correct for Spain) left hand drive car – yes, I do notice such details!!

This attention to detail pervades everything, from the carefully ostentatious set to the perfectly judged costumes for each character – we could tell so much about them before they ever opened their mouths. All of this was of course brought together by the talented direction of Amy Burns, and every person connected with this production in whatever capacity is to be congratulated.

‘Going Straight’ continues its run at The Apollo every evening until Saturday 28^th October – curtain up at 7.30pm. Don’t miss it!

Review - Forget-Me-Knot by David Tristram

One of the hardest things for an actor is holding the audience’s interest alone on stage without speaking – and for the first few minutes of ‘Forget-Me-Knot’, that is exactly the task of Simon Lynch; not only does he rise to the challenge admirably, but his shambling entrance, awkward removal and dropping of coat, faux-important shuffling of papers on his desk and frustrated wait for his unseen colleague to answer the phone immediately give us the nature of his character, and are a triumph of talented acting and the skilled directing of Steve Reading.

By the time we meet the recipient of his next phone call, the abrupt, arrogant Mrs Zeinfeld, played superbly by Helen Reading, we are drawn into the confused and confusing world of Detective Inspector Munroe, and the hilarity has already begun.

We can sympathise to an extent with the Inspector’s difficulties: he has on his hands a man who appears to be Robert Zeinfeld, but who has apparently lost his memory, is in the wrong town and may or may not be recognised by his wife. Drew Adcock as Robert (or not...) is an excellent foil to the Inspector’s impatience to get the bottom of the mystery, as he by turns complies meekly with his questioning and shows his own frustration at being told he is, then is not Robert. The quick-fire exchanges between the two are a highlight of the play, including such lines as: ‘The balls may ache, but that’s no excuse for letting grammar slip.’

The staging supports the play’s fast pace perfectly: the main stage is split to depict two separate rooms in the police station which are alternately lit to provide a smooth transition between scenes, while a small thrust stage houses the few domestic scenes, primarily giving us an insight into another of the Inspector’s problems – his relationship with his busy doctor wife, played with a perfect mixture of authority and panic by Amy Burns, who is reluctant to come to the station to give her medical opinion on the apparent amnesiac – until his name is mentioned...

Who is the mystery caller to Robert’s phone? Why does Mrs Zeinfeld identify this man as her husband and then claim she has never seen him before? What is the significance of topiary pheasants – I mean peacocks? And frying pans? Is the real Robert Zeinfeld in Leicester or Blackpool?

To find out, you’ll have to come along to see this very funny play at The Apollo Theatre. You’ll be as confused as the Inspector – but considerably more entertained and amused.

‘Forget-Me-Knot’ will be performed tonight, and then next Tuesday to Friday inclusive; shows start at 7.30pm and are kindly sponsored by the Vectis Sunrise Rotary Club.

'Forget-Me-Knot' by David Tristram - The Apollo Players

If you enjoy a rollicking laugh-out-loud comedy with elements of farce, you could do no better than come along to see ‘Forget-Me-Knot’ by David Tristram, the next play to be performed by The Apollo Players.

Someone who may or may not be Robert Zeinfeld is found wandering through the streets of Leicester in the early hours of the morning. How did he get there? Is he who he appears? How did he get the bruise on his head? Has he really lost his memory? And what secrets are held by Robert’s wife? How much help can she be to Inspector Monroe, who is trying to solve the mystery? And where does Monroe’s own wife fit in?

And in fact, is anyone who and what they claim to be?

The play, directed by Steve Reading, brings together experienced regulars Drew Adcock, Amy Burns and Helen Reading and introduces Simon Lynch to the Apollo stage.

The plot has been described as having ‘more twists and turns than a buckled slinky’, but all will become clear in the end...or will it?

We are grateful for sponsorship of this production to The Vectis Sunrise Rotary Club, who meet at 7.30am every Wednesday morning at the Riverside Centre to share ideas, pool skills and raise money for local and international organisations.  To find out more, go along or phone Jeremy on 01983 539530.

‘Forget-Me-Knot’ is staged from 11-19 May (not Sunday or Monday) at the Apollo theatre, Pyle Street, Newport; tickets may be obtained via our website at http://www.apollo-theatre.org.uk/forget-me-knot/

Photo, courtesy of Paul Jennings, shows l-r Amy Burns, Drew Adcock, Simon Lynch, Steve Reading and Helen Reading in rehearsal.

He Wishes For The Cloths Of Heaven

WB Yeats

HAD I the heavens' embroidered cloths,
Enwrought with golden and silver light,
The blue and the dim and the dark cloths
Of night and light and the half-light,
I would spread the cloths under your feet:
But I, being poor, have only my dreams;
I have spread my dreams under your feet;
Tread softly because you tread on my dreams.

I have a special relationship with this poem: I encountered it while studying Yeats in college, and I loved it on first reading, so much so that I copied it out – I was into calligraphy at the time – and displayed it on my student room wall.

It speaks to me of the magic of being in love: of finding someone so amazing that you want to give them the world; you’d almost literally do anything for them. Later in my life, this love expanded to include my children, but rather than spreading the cloths of heaven under their feet, I would wrap them round my children to protect and warm them.

Yet the poem speaks also of the vulnerability of love – in giving yourself, you are also giving away the power to hurt you, as anyone who has ever suffered a broken relationship knows. The poem ends with a plea to the loved on not to trample on the dreams we have built around them.

The last three lines, reflecting this vulnerability, recur in ‘The Loves of Cass McGuire’, spoken by characters who have suffered rejection and despair, and are a plea not to destroy their fantasies, which are all they have left to sustain them.

It leaves me reflecting that maybe we all, as humans, sometimes deal with unpleasant truths in our lives by deciding to see things in a different way – a way that supports us, whether or not it accurately reflects the objective truth. And what is truth anyway?