The two-and-a-half-hour shows, with an updated script, are being performed by The Garrick Theatre Company, and can be seen at the Garrick Theatre, 16 Meadow Street, Guildford on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights at 8.00 pm, until 13^th August. The Sunday matinées are on 31^st July and 7^th August at 2.00 pm.

The set is the oak panelled lounge of the Monument House Hotel in Norfolk. The hotel is under renovation and is soon to re-open as a Health Farm.

On one wall there is a set of patio doors, at the back a massive Gothic-style, Jacobean wooden fireplace, and to the right a door leading to the main passageway and kitchen. There are two settees and a couple of armchairs. In a house like this there had to be a palm in a pot standing on a whatnot. This most impressive set was created with a great deal of hard work, by Keith and Heather Abbott. The oil painting of the matriarch was by Carol Koppler. Wendy Goodwin and her backstage crew of Marion West and Karl Cechner had plenty to keep them occupied.

       It is a foggy night in February. In Monument House, the family home of the Tombs since 1784, are two of the remaining descendants of the Borgias, quaint Aunt Hecuba (Kerry Goode) and her warped, teenage niece, Drusilla (Hayley Derwort). They are discussing the good old days, and the various guest who have died in their mansion.

      There is a loud knocking on the front door, and local businessman, Sir Beverley (Keith Abbott) bursts in. He is furious that a large financial agreement with a Tomb relative had not been carried out, and he is now in big trouble.

      Just as things are getting really nasty, a famous writer, Philippa Collins (Sarah House) who is fed up with driving in the dense fog, arrives with her dippy secretary, Daphne (Heather Abbott) looking for a room. They are convinced they were being followed by another car. Feeling the cold, Sir Beverley’s driver, Anthony (Morgan Hyde) comes into the house for a warm drink, bringing with him a tall stranger he noticed wandering around outside.

      This unusual guest turned out to be a TV presenter, Quentin Danesworth (Graham Miles) who seems to know a great deal, perhaps too much, about the house’s history. As he is talking to Hecuba’s friend, Cecily, from the village (Jenny Trestrail), a honeymoon couple arrive. The husband is fawning Robert (Richard Hadler) and his bimbo wife, with bouncing attributes, Miranda (Kylie Calwell) who is also a TV personality.

      With so many undesirable visitors, the name and reputation of the Borgias must be maintained.

Geoff Holt’s lighting and sound design captured the mood of the spooky venue perfectly; and the lighting and sound effects, that required split second timing, were carried out impeccably by Sandra Cechner.

The esteemed director, Lynne Devenish, was generous enough to take on two or three actors who had little or no experience, or had been off the stage for a few years. It always adds extra work, but the whole cast drew together immaculately, giving us a flawless who-dun-it that totally fooled me. However, with their superb stage presence, Kerry Goode and her play nemesis, Keith Abbott were exceptional.

The final curtain call gave a new meaning to ‘curtains for all’ or ‘the actor died on stage’.

A well-presented play, that takes a little bit of concentration, but the very varied and unusual characters brightened up the whole drama. Along with a few directorial innuendos, this comedy gave us numerous laughs. You will die laughing.

This very well produced, fast moving, two and a half hour drama from the Garrick Theatre Company, can be seen at the Garrick Theatre, 16 Meadow Street, Guildford at 8.00 pm nightly until 23^rd April. Sunday matinee is at 2.00 pm.

The season is almost sold out, booking essential.

The setting is August 1930 on Soldier Island, off the coast of Devon. The scene is a luxurious, massive sitting room (I did not know that the Garrick stage went back that far), with sliding doors leading to a rear patio overlooking the Bristol Channel – which actually rippled (clever art effect by Carol Keppler). This superb set was built by Robert Vincent, Clayton Reichert and the tasteful décor added with the skilful aid of Susan Vincent and Carol Keppler.

On the mantelpiece of the log fire are ten wooden toy soldiers, dressed in regimental scarlet jackets and busbies (made by Narelle Borbely). The sumptuous room décor carries through the soldiers’ theme of black, scarlet and white.

Smooth stage management from Colleen Bradford and Jenna McGoughan-Shaw.

        The play opens as the overbearing butler, Rogers (Graham Miles), and his pale, nervous wife, Ethel the cook (Colleen Bradford) are checking the food supplies for a private gathering. The couple were hired by Mr and Mrs Owen, a couple of weeks earlier, to clean and prepare the newly purchased, remote island house and to look after the guests.

       As there is no ferry to the island, a local fisherman, Fred Marracot (Tom Goode) transports any guests and domestic requirements to the house. Today, on his first voyage, he has brought a young schoolmistress, Vera Claythorne (Fiona Forster) and a couple of men. The first is flirtatious Phillip Lombard (Alan Shaw) a cruel mercenary, military officer who has just returned from Africa; he is accompanied by a reckless, self-centred young student, Anthony Marston (Ben Lowther).

       On his second crossing, Fred has ferries the mysterious South African, William Davis (Alan Morris), the semi-senile, war hero General MacKenzie (Les Lee) and the religious zealot, the elderly prim, Emily Brent (Kerry Goode). The last two guests to arrive are a heartless, retired judge, Sir Lawrence Wargrave (John Gwilym) and an alcoholic Harley Street medic, Dr Armstrong (Robert Vincent).

      Rogers announces that the hosts have been delayed and won’t be arriving until the following day, but that the guests should all make themselves at home in the meanwhile. However, when a cryptic recording is played to the gathering, it seems that they all have sordid pasts and because of that, each one may well die over the next 24 hours.

I must have seen this play half a dozen times over the years, but there are so many red herrings that I still have trouble recalling the killer.

Fantastic director, Susan Vincent has selected a terrific cast, who are each perfect for the rich characters that they depict. There is a good pace to the story, with the chemistry between all of the personalities being both delightful and threatening. You can watch every actor for that slight flicker of a hint as to who the killer is – without success. Top rate performances. There are numerous little details inserted by the director that make the mystery just that little bit more intricate and baffling.

The mood lighting design and powerful soundscape are the hard work of Geoff Holt. He must have had his shoes and socks off, as at times he would have required several hands to create the perfectly synchronised, dramatic and demanding, sound and lighting effects.

I thought the only person left on stage must be the guilty person – the lass working the curtains!

Audiences love a good thriller, and this is one of the VERY best, both by the playwright and this clever Garrick team bringing you terrific suspense.

This two and a half hour production is one part of a trilogy, featuring the ill-fated ‘Chester Dreadnought’; it is showing at the Garrick Theatre, 16 Meadow Street, Guildford.

The performances are nightly at 8.00 pm on a Thursday, Friday and Saturday until Saturday 14^th February. There are Sunday matinees at 2.00 pm.

The set is the interior of a rundown, country cottage. A very good Tudor-style set (Fred Petersen, Keith and Heather Abbott, Peter Gilberthorpe). It is a sitting room with front door leading directly into the room. There is a staircase going to the upstairs bedrooms.

The décor is complete with cobwebs; you could sense the neglect.

     The curtains rise as a massive flash of lightning illuminates the dark room. The sound of thunder and pouring rain can be heard (superb effects – Geoff Holt). There is a pounding on the front door. A scruffy, elderly yokel staggers down the stairs muttering, this Abel Bounty (Keith Abbott) the local handyman. Along with his unkempt wife (Ann Speicher), he has been hired by the new owners to clean out the remote house that has stood empty for a decade.

      He opens the door and the posh new owner, Chester Dreadnought (Graham Miles) staggers in with his suitcase. As the two introduce themselves, a voluptuous woman in a black silk chemise comes down the stairs and warmly hugs Chester. ‘Who is this woman?’ thinks Chester. Could this be Carol (Fiona Forster) a one-night stand from a few months ago?

    The front door opens and to Chester’s horror his loving wife, Patricia (Joy Norton) enters with a leather suitcase. To make things worse, his toffee-nosed mother, Lady Elrood (Marsha Holt) is close behind. There is a massive explosion heard from outside and the eccentric and senile, Lord Elrood (Ray Egan) rushes in with a double barrel shotgun in his hand. Still thinking that he is a General at war, he is worried by the presence of Sergeant Everest (John Forde) and his troops in the surrounding forest.

      As they talk, an old dear who is in touch with the spirits, Miss Partridge (Heather Abbott) wanders into the house, almost unaware of the crowd of people, she is far more interested in the building itself.

Like most farces, the confusion and disasters rely upon people being in the wrong place at the wrong time. However, in this play hapless Chester tries to talk himself out of various situations, only to dig himself in even further.

The play is directed by the talented master of farces, award-winning director, Fred Petersen. Fred has selected an excellent cast. Every actor understood their richly written persona exactly; all being very different and well defined. The costumes (no credit in programme) were exceptional and captured the characters perfectly. It was great teamwork and they all conquered the genre.

I saw the opening night, and with the complex script there were a few first night nerves, but within minutes the cast got into the flow, and by the end the farce was perfectly paced and bringing plenty of laughs.

A quality farce from a brilliant team.