‘Part One’ of the play caused ructions and the ire of morality groups when it was released, yet it went on to win every major award, including a Pulitzer Prize and two Tony Awards for Best Play.

This wonderful mammoth, 3-hour drama can be seen at the Heath Ledger Theatre, State Theatre Centre, Northbridge nightly at 7.30 until Sunday 19^th June.

The stage is devoid of the normal flats and scenery, instead the sides of the stage have walls of lamp rigs – spots, floods, the full range; there are about 70 lamps on each side of the stage arranged at a dozen different levels.

The whole ‘ceiling’ of the stage comprised dozens of opaque Perspex panels, lit from above. The set and costume designer, Christina Smith, has selected numerous superb props, which completely satisfy the audience, giving a full mental picture of the venue, wealth etc.

The back wall consisted of black drapes that blended into infinity. They subtly opened and closed, allowing props and cast to enter. The numerous props / furniture entered silently and smoothly on travelling floor belts. Stage manager Peter Sutherland and his assistant, Claudia Blagaich certainly had to work for their crust in this show.

The work of the company’s mechanist, Nathan Fry, is often taken for granted, but here the directors and designer have created moving furniture, fly wire harness, the incredible wrath of God, inclement weather, a descending coffin and a spectacular final scene that left the audience speechless. Superb work.

On this occasion, it was good to see the major stage teamsters being invited to join the actors for the curtain call.

This synopsis of the story is more informative than usual, and for some, may contain too many spoilers; however, for others it may help them follow the unusual storyline.

      It is 1985 in New York City, and we are at the funeral of Louis’s grandmother, with the aged Rabbi Chemelwitz (Toni Scanlan) blundering his way through a vale. After the service, ‘word processor’ Louis Ironson (Will O’Mahony), a neurotic lover, meets Prior Walter (Adam Booth) his partner of four years. Prior tells Louis that he has contracted AIDS. After months of caring for Prior, unable to cope, Louis deserts his friend in his final hours of need.

     Louis then embarks upon a relationship with the apparently ‘straight’ Mormon lawyer, Joe Pitt (Stuart Halusz) who, due to his latent homosexuality, has been having difficulty living with his wife, Harper. Agoraphobic ‘Buddy’ Harper (Jo Morris) is a Valium-addict, who fanaticises her way out of her misery, by planning holidays with imaginary travel agent, Mr. Lies (Kenneth Ransom).  

     True-life, brutal, right-wing solicitor, Roy Cohn (John Stanton) – who is gay, but despises other gays – offers Joe a senior post in the Washington Justice Department.

      We next see Prior desperately sick in bed. In a dream the daunting Angel of America (Felicity McKay) with a divine presence, has descended from Heaven and nominates Prior to become a prophet and spread the message. He declines the offer, but poor Prior could not start to contemplate the suffering in store for him. Prior turns to his best friend, dependable, ex-drag queen, Belize (Kenneth Ransom) for support. Prior tells Belize how he hears an Angel’s voice saying that she is coming for him – the angel’s help turns out to be an AIDS cure, and Prior goes to a hospice under the care of compassionate nurse Emily (Felicity McKay).

In one fantasy episode, Harriet is informed by Prior that Joe is a closeted homosexual and, in a touching performance, she challenges her husband on the topic. Now exposed, Joe and Louis become closer, and one night whilst drunk, Joe phones his mother, Hannah Pitt (Toni Scanlan) to inform her he is Gay. His mother panics, and wants to move to New York to help guide Joe back onto the straight and narrow. She puts her house up for sale with real estate agent, Ella Chapter (Felicity McKay).

     On visiting his GP, Dr Henry (Toni Scanlan), Roy finds he too has AIDS – but in denial calls it ‘liver cancer’. After high pressure from Cohn and his pathetic senior assistant, Martin Heller (Jo Morris), Joe decides to turn down Cohn’s job offer. Furious, Cohn calls Joe a wimp and goes on to say how he achieved his exalted position, even boasting how he executed Ethel Rosenberg (Toni Scanlan) for Treason as part of by McCarthy regime.

     As he becomes stronger, Prior’s ancestors from 17 generations earlier, appear at his bedside. They are a medieval farmer (Stuart Halusz) and a refined, seventeenth-century Londoner (John Stanton), both of whom died of the plague. They are enlisted to prepare for the advent of the ‘Angel of America’.

Directed by two award winners, Kate Cherry and her assistant Joe Lui, this complex story required all of their skills to stop the tale from becoming bogged down, and to ensure it retained the audience’s attention throughout; this duo were magnificent.

The movement director, Lisa Scott Murphy, ensured that the numerous entrances and exits flowed perfectly. Dialect coach, Luzita Fereday thankfully had the cast all speaking with the same understated New York accent.

The storyline has aged a little, but the depth of emotion demanded and the exemplary delivery by this top notch, highly experienced troupe guaranteed a freshness. The cast had the challenging task of involving the audience in their tension, fear and stress for three hours, but by giving each actor a number of characters to play, including women playing males, it kept their performances alive. The script has several very funny sections that again lifted the show from the grim topic, retained the pace and allowed light relief.

Often in Gay plays, the cast feel obliged to caricature the characters, thankfully this cast were subtle, and even the overtly gay Belize had just the correct amount of limp wrist.

Assistant director Joe Lui, renowned for his chromatic use, has worked well with lighting designer Matt Scott to produce a remarkable visual experience from the vast lighting rigs.

Sound designer and composer, Ash Gibson Greig, was at his very best; with a backing ranging from subtle creepy, dirge-like strings to a bouncy Beatles’ tune. There were several unusual sound effects required, and these too were inspirational and dramatic.

The show had a couple of scenes that were daring even by today’s standard, but when the play was first staged, the audience’s reaction was one of horror and repulsion.

This thought-provoking show was not demoralising, but worked at every level of performance, direction and teching. A memorable, remarkable production that makes one hope ‘Part Two’ will be staged in the near future.

This 80-minute, Second Chance Theatre and Blue Room production can be seen in the Blue Room Main Theatre, Perth Cultural Centre, James Street, Northbridge nightly at the earlier time of 7.00, until Saturday 26^th September.

The set is a bedroom / cabin in a massive, aging spacecraft. The room has three airlock doors, but no windows. Set designer, Sara Chirichilli has created an impressive, ‘well-worn’ room, superbly built by John King. The reality is such, that very quickly you believe that you are on-board. The costumes are by Sophie Braham.

A large interactive computer screen hangs on one wall. The jaw-droppingly ingenious AV design is by Warwick Doddrell, which along with Scott McArdle’s lighting effects brings a completely new environment to the Blue Room theatre.

Tim Brain’s soundscape, combined with Drew Kraplijanov’s subtle music, brings life to the whole scene. (Operated by Daley King)

       The room light comes on, showing a young man, Vincent (Nick Maclaine), asleep on his bed. A semi-robotic voice, Vi (Jo Morris) announces over the spaceship’s Tannoy that it is a new day, before asking what Vincent would like for his breakfast.

       Vincent has been on this same spacecraft alone, since he was three years old. He has not seen another human being in more than twenty years. As he has matured, his desire to know more about his parents, why he is alone in space and what his future holds, has come to the surface of his mind.

       One day whilst resting, a girl in a bathing costume (Emily David) appears in his room. Is she real? On the other hand, is she yet another virtual laser projection? Should Vincent challenge the system, and what will happen if he does?

Nick Maclaine was on stage for the whole 80 minutes; he played several very different characters, with various accents. His energy-packed performance was flawless, as the script swung from pedantic to threatening terror.

Jo Morris, who supplied the controller’s voice, was magnificent as she tried to command the captive space traveller. Emily David also had various characters and personae; the overall teamwork was exceptional, and even on a genre in which I am not usually interested, the suspense was complete.

Scott has a dry sense of humour and there were many comic lines, which helped balance the script mood.

An amazing amount of thought has been put into this production, so I am sure that this play will become a multi-award winner. The acting, set, lighting and AV effects were all supreme. With all of the twists, the story grabs you until the end. Highly recommended.

This 60-minute, disquieting mystery is a The Lost Boys presentation, produced by Georgia King. It can be seen at the Blue Room Studio, Perth Cultural Centre, James Street, Northbridge at 8.30 nightly until Saturday 5^th September.

The set is of a cove at the foot of some cliffs near Blackpool. Set designer, Patrick Howe, has constructed a most convincing, rugged cliff face with black plastic sheeting. On the ground is the sandy beach covered with thick foam (stage managed by Meabh Walton).

The lighting designer, Chris Donnelly, and the sound designer, Will Slade, have obviously worked together very well, to produce the tremendous atmosphere. The play calls for dramatic, threatening storms with periods of enlightenment, which Chris has captured beautifully; when coupled with possibly the best soundscape I have ever heard, the overall effect is outstanding. For the full 60 minutes of the play, Will’s sound is a subtle blend of rumbling, low level music and wonderfully vibrant, stereo, seaside sound effects that really built up the tension.

        It is early morning in a small cove on an island close to shore. A middle-aged woman (Claire Munday) wakes to find herself covered in spume. She sits up and looks around. Where is she? What is worse – who is she? Along the beach comes a teenage girl (Tessa Carmody) who looks familiar. She has the same mannerisms and body gait as herself. They talk and it becomes apparent to them that they know each other; in fact, they could even be related.

     The women talk and soon discover that they had both been to a dance at the hotel on top of White Climb. The older lady remembers meeting a terrible old woman called the ‘Crab Turtle’ and believes that she may have stolen part of her memory.

     As they chat, a girl (Jo Morris) in her mid-twenties walks out of the crashing waves. Again they notice the resemblance. This soaking girl is covered in blood; and is that a piece of flesh that she is carrying?

   What has she found in the stormy sea? What made her lose her memory too? Could it be depression, worry or even conscience?

The director, Mikala Westall, soon after winning a Fringe World award, received a prestigious ‘Emerging Artist Award’. Mikala has been mentored by another respected director who has given her confidence over the years, Joe Lui.

This is a very difficult abstract story to produce. It is important to retain the suspense, and drip feed the story to the audience. Often this results in a tedious presentation that can become frustrating, and you find yourself continually looking at you watch – talented director Mikala and her superlative cast have handled this story with an amazing amount of skill, making the audience want more in an attempt to piece together this captivating, beautifully written complex story.

All three actors conveyed the confusion and fear of their isolation with delicate skill. Beautiful team work and sensitive acting.

Driving home you will be asking ‘Does that mean she ….?’ as the tale finally clicks into place. A brilliant production that will give you food for thought.

The book adaptation was produced as a play (starring Cecil Parker, Fay Compton and Margaret Rutherford) in London’s West End in 1941. It had the ‘longest run’ record of 1,997 performances. After the radio drama, television play and musical, ‘Blithe Spirit’ was in 1945 made into a successful film, this was only David Lean’s fourth film as a director, yet his third Coward film. ‘Blithe Spirit’ was soon followed by Coward’s major classic ‘Brief Encounter’.

After the war, the theatres suffered and so Coward metamorphosed into a cabaret and TV star, with songs such as ‘Mad Dogs and Englishmen’.

He was knighted in 1970, and in 1973 died peacefully in Jamaica, his home for 20 years.

This wonderfully funny 2 hour 30 minute production is being produced and presented by the Black Swan State Theatre Company, at the Heath Ledger Theatre, State Theatre Centre of Western Australia, Northbridge each evening at 7.30 until 9^th August.

Sadly Perth actor, Roz Hammond, the versatile star of Shaun Micallef’s ‘Mad as Hell’, has had to withdraw from the show due to illness; but she has been replaced by Equity award winning Alison van Reeken. Having only been given the part three days ago, Alison carried a script – which she subtly referred to infrequently. Most actors have a 5 week rehearsal period, and yet she has captured her quirky character perfectly. The facial expressions, body language and diction could not be improved upon, a stellar performance.

It is 1940. The setting is the cavernous sitting room in the Condomines mansion near Folkestone, on the south coast of England (award winning set designer Bryan Woltjen). The cream painted room has a cathedral ceiling. On one side is a fireplace, a wall covered in oil paintings and electric gramophone. At the rear of the room is a huge arch, with plush red velvet drapes hung on each side. On the other wall are patio doors with ceiling height windows above. These doors overlook a well-tended garden. The scene is lit with warm lighting (lighting designer Jon Buswell) that subtly changed as the day went by, until the pink sky outside gave a cosy glow. When the ghost appeared, a blue white follow spot gave an amazing iridescence and genuinely eerie appearance.

The costumes have been very well researched (costume designer Bryan Woltjen), from the shimmering white of the ghost’s outfit, to the perky feathered hats (milliner Susi Rigg). Mrs Condomine wore a full-length, dark green velvet dress, a particularly difficult material to sew, but the style and finish was superb (costume makers Jennifer Edwards, Jennifer Stewart). Most of the time Madame Arcati wore an almost hippy outfit, however, she had the most immaculate, pastel checked, flared short jacket and knee-length culottes. Mr Condomine wore a pair of red Turkish / Arabian curled-toed slippers, a very popular souvenir with the ‘desert rat ‘soldiers returning from the war in the Middle East.

The hair styles (consultant Virginia Hawdon) and wig construction (Lynn Ferguson) not only had to reflect the 1940s, but make the actors that little bit eccentric.

The visual creations, lighting, costumes and set, were all exceptional.

          Before the1940s tableau-style proscenium curtain was raised, we were treated to composer, Ash Gibson Greig’s idiosyncratic overture. This was a clever blend of so many topics from the play, there were the eerie ghostly sounds, the bouncy madcap freedom of the acting, and even the tinkle of the strange Madame Arcati’s bicycle bell could be heard in the music. Clever and innovative writing.

        The very nervous, enthusiastic but slightly dippy housemaid, Edith (Ella Hetherington – delightful) is trying to please her long-suffering employer, Ruth Condomine (Adriane Daff) by not running around the house. Sitting in his chair supping a wine is Ruth’s husband, Charles Condomine (Adam Booth). He is a successful novelist, who wishes to learn about the occult for a book he is writing. Charles has organised for an eccentric medium, Madame Arcati (Alison van Reeken) to hold a séance at his house. The family GP, Dr Bradman (Michael Loney) and his sycophantic wife, Mrs Bradman (Michelle Fornasier) are invited along to witness ‘the happening’.

     When the guests have left for home, Charles’s first wife, Elvira (Jo Morris), turns up at the house. Elvira is still very much in love with Charles, which causes Ruth a great deal of distress. The jealousy becomes really serious when a vase gets thrown and the dirty tricks become vicious. After a highly dramatic finish, who actually won Charles’ hand, Ruth or Elvira?

Thankfully WA director and NIDA graduate, Jeffrey Jay Fowler, has had years of theatrical experience including playwriting, acting and direction, winning many awards on the way, this enabled him to capture the unique Coward style perfectly. Coward’s slightly dated dialogue requires accurate intonation and pacing, with a precise body language to create the full effect of this classic. The humour contained in the personalities and subtle writing, rather than straight jokes and one-liners. Fowler and his terrific cast were totally in tune.

Credit should go to stage manager, Georgia Landré-Ord and her assistant, Claudia Blagaich – they worked for their money.

This magnificent cast has conquered every little expression and twitch, making the whole show exciting to today’s audience. Jo Morris was almost balletic as she flitted across the floor. The Bradmans gave that extra sparkle to the séance sequence. I have always admired Adriane Daff’s work, but this performance is her best yet. The chemistry between Charles Condomine and his two wives was convincing and electric.

Once again, congratulations to Alison van Reeken on mastering such a difficult challenge.

A terrific presentation of ‘a rave from the grave’.

Still in his mid-thirties, this highly successful playwright has had 71 commissioned plays, performed on five continents and translated into five languages. Many of his plays are for children, and indeed he has won many awards, both Australian and international, for his celebrated writing.

This wonderful, fast moving, 75-minute production comes courtesy of Jo Morris and theMOXYcollective (Renée Newman-Storen and Mark Storen), and is part of the Pride Festival. It can be seen at The Blue Room Theatre, 53 James Street, Northbridge, every evening at 8.30 until Saturday the 29^th November.

The set is another of India Mehta’s inspired ‘transformers’. The versatile unit is built like an area in a diner, with two bench seats and a central table, compartmented in a box. On rotation, this remarkably clever unit becomes a shop window, a lookout, a submarine, restaurant, and even a house front door. India has been aided in designing the set and costumes by Sally Phipps.

The speed of the numerous set changes had to be less than three seconds each to keep the pace and tension going, and so the costume changes had to be just as fast. The outfits must still present clearly the nationality and personality depicted by the actor; the simple, but well-chosen articles of clothing were perfect.

 

       In a Parisian street, a watch mender (Ben Mortley) sits at his shop window watching (no pun intended) the world go by. He explains how by adjusting the cog sizes of a clock he can speed time up, or slow it down. He has just finished repairing a timepiece and as he hands it to the young lady owner (Renée Newman-Storen), he tells her the time is 9.15 and that she should reset the hands.

      We are transported to a Cold War Russian Submarine deep in the waters of the Atlantic, just off the American coast of Georgia. It is 9.15 on the same day. We experience how the captain of the vessel hassles his crew and worries about his future.

      Still in the same time zone, we are taken to the Appalachian Mountains where, lying in the snow, are a couple of young shooters practising target shooting. The girl (Jo Morris) is finding it very difficult and would rather be wrapped up in a warm bed with her instructor.

     At 9.15 in a restaurant, a nervous young couple are meeting for their blind date.

 

In this richly observed collection of personality and character studies, we are taken to various international venues, meeting several very different folk on the way. Under the imaginative and meticulous direction of the multi-award winning director, Adam Mitchell, the three highly talented cast members gave good solid, flawless performances whilst shifting scenery, changing their costumes and adopting various accents – and there were many – an actor could be speaking with a convincing French accent then immediately change to a thick Russian brogue.

The instant recognition of the locations was helped by the clever use of the lighting (designer Chris Donnelly) combined with pertinent mood music and sound effects (sound designer Ben Collins). They gave an expert finish to this exciting and fascinating look at people’s lives.

With such a fine script and three incredible performers, this show was a fine example of what theatre is all about.

Georgia King’s production of ‘Welcome to Slaughter’ was developed with the support of PACT, centre for emerging artists, and HotHouse Theatre’s ‘A Month in the Country’ residential program, a project delivered in partnership with Albury City.

This outstanding 50-minute play can be seen at the Blue Room Theatre, 53 James Street, Northbridge nightly until 25^th October. Performances commence at 7.00 pm.

The audience are ushered through forest growth as big leafy branches trail in your face. The ground is thick with autumn leaves and rotting logs. At the side stands a very old VW (?) convertible car with the roof down – it moves! Through an arch, dense dank undergrowth can be seen. The full moon lights up the scene. Superb set and AV by Shaye Preston, with a special mention to stage manager Georgia Smith and production manager Meabh Walton.

        An old car is driving through countryside lanes. It is the middle of the night and there is a full moon. In the car are two young women who have been in a relationship for several years. They are getting away from it all with a break in the country.

      We see the glow of the twisting roadside as the kilometres fly by, and watch as the driver (Jo Morris) struggles to stay awake by inanely singing along with the car radio. Her bored partner (Michelle Robin Anderson) tries to entertain herself, but in the end succumbs to weary, childish car games. Soon the warm glow of the morning sky can be seen.

      It is time for a pee break. The car draws into the side of the road. Whilst the driver is sitting in the car waiting for her friend to return, who should arrive on the scene but someone she hadn’t seen for many a year.

Every now and again, the ‘complete production’ arrives at the theatre. This is one of those special occasions. It has an amazing storyline, very well directed (Michelle Robin Anderson, Joe Lui), tremendous actors, fabulous mood lighting (Joe Lui), realistic set, perfect costumes, makeup, mood music and effects.

Brett Smith has produced a pumping, eerie soundtrack, that ranged from a couple of decibels to 120 dBs – that of a plane taking off. The creepy voiceovers make you shudder; this really was an amazing soundscape.

When an emotion-charged production has truly succeeded, as in the case of a tragedy or as in this production, chilling horror, the applause can often be stunted, when deep down the audience would really like to give a standing ovation. Last night the actors left the stage and not a single audience member moved for about 30 seconds – totally drained and fearful of having to leave the theatre through the haunted forest.

So take your heart tablets, wear incontinence pads – I guarantee that you will jump with shock – and trot down to the Blue Room for a new experience. Un-missable quality.

There really was a Desire streetcar line in New Orleans. The route ran for 30 years, being closed around the epoch of this play. It ran from Bourbon through the Quarter to Desire Street in the Bywater. The character of Blanche may be based on Williams’ mentally ill sister, Rose, who after a lobotomy became debilitated.

The Black Swan State Theatre Company is presenting this star-filled classic at the Heath Ledger Theatre, in the State Theatre Centre of WA, Northbridge. The performances are 3 hours 20 minutes, and run until Sunday 6^th April. The curtain goes up each evening at 7.30.

This play has been so amazingly popular that it now has an extended season, so please check for new performances up to the 13th April.

The amazing set (designed by Christina Smith, assisted by India Mehta) is of a two-storey apartment block in the French Quarter of New Orleans just after World War ll. It is colonial style, with a metal spiral staircase on the outside. On the ground floor is a poor, dishevelled, one room flat.

Matt Scott’s exceptional lighting design creates an extra sleaziness to the house. He has lit each small area separately, often having several cool patches of greens and blue blended with the warm colours to change the mood in the room. When a streetcar rumbled past (very convincing sound design, Ben Collins) the flashing car lights lit up the room, heightening a climax in the script.

        The neon sign of a bar shows through the steamy heat of the evening. The soft jazz music of an alto sax (played by composer Ben Collins) drifts from the top floor. A woman dressed smartly in a white suit and carrying an expensive handbag is searching for a house.

       This is Faubourg Marigny, a poor quarter of New Orleans where Stella and Stanley Kowalski survive in their small Elysian Fields Avenue apartment. Although grubby, the neighbourhood is alive, vivacious and with a sensual ambiance.

       Two women are sitting on the spiral staircase, Eunice (Alison van Reeken) and her Negro friend (Irma Woods). They spot the striking, Southern Belle, Blanche DuBois (Sigrid Thornton) an alcoholic who has delusions of grandeur and pretensions to culture. Blanche is truly a delicate, disturbed woman desperate for security in her life. She explains, ‘They told me to take a streetcar named ‘Desire’, and then transfer to one called ‘Cemeteries’. After a recent traumatic period, Blanche is essentially seeking sanctuary with her sister, Stella (Jo Morris). Eunice has a spare key for Stella’s flat. On entering, Blanche is horrified by her sister’s poky apartment, especially after the ancestral Southern estate she has just left.

       Her deceptive poise is not solely to attract male partners, but is a personal shield of delusions and fantasy from the reality of having lost her family fortune and home. Neither will she face the truth about her homosexual husband’s suicide, nor her sacking for seducing a young pupil at the school where she taught, instead she tells Stanley and Stella her problem is nervous exhaustion. Blanche turns to alcohol at every chance.

      As Stella welcomes Blanche with some trepidation, she is terrified of what her husband Stanley (Nathaniel Dean) will say about the new visitor. From the beginning, Blanche is appalled at her brutish brother-in-law. Like all of the other women in the area, Stella is compliant in sex, oppression and in love with her husband.

      One evening, Stanley has some friends around for their weekly poker night. There is Pablo (Benj D’Addario), Eunice’s husband, Steve (Steve Turner) and a middle-aged mummy’s boy, Harold (Luke Hewitt). During their game, Blanche, seeing a possible answer to her prayers, snuggles up to Harold. The anger in Stanley is immediately aroused by this intrusion.

     Next day, when a young collector (Callum Fletcher) calls for the week’s newspaper money, Blanche pays him in her own way.

     Stanley, suspicious of the circumstances that led to Blanche leaving her hometown of Laurel, finds some strange truths about her affairs. Blanche’s grip on reality is becoming more fragile. By now, Stella’s first baby is due any day. A doctor (Michael Loney) and his nurse (Rhoda Lopez) arrive at the house to care for the patient.

 Black Swan’s resident artistic director, Kate Cherry has been capably assisted in the directing by Lawrie Cullen-Tait and also by renowned choreographer and movement specialist, Chrissie Parrott. The team has produced a visually exciting production, with an especially good interpretation of the script. Every nuance has been demonstrated.

Only one thing is worse than a false American accent, and that is when each member of the cast has accents from different States of America. Voice coach, Melissa Agnew has skilfully guided and blended the cast’s intonations into one authentic New Orleans’ southern drawl. This is not simply an American accent, but it has that extra roughness and Hispanic overtones of the poorer class. Although the actors were most impressive, it took me quite a few minutes to ‘tune in’ and understand the dialogue. Initially, I wished that their skills had not been quite so precise.

The delightful Sigrid Thornton nailed the part from the opening scene. There is a point where she is about to compliment Stella on her youthful looks, and pulls back and insults her clothes and hair instead. These tiny expressions and movements took the whole performance into a different league. Without spoiling the tale, the change in Blanche throughout was subtle in voice, movement and whole body demeanour, a superlative performance.

The beginning of the second Act started with a charming love scene, where poor Harold pleaded with Blanche for her hand; this was particularly well handled. Both Jo Morris and Nathaniel Dean had brilliant chemistry throughout the wild mood swings in their life.

I often wonder if it is harder for the costume maker to create luxurious gowns or to make clothing that looks well worn. A few tears and a bit of dirt rubbed in never looks authentic. The garment makers Lexi Hobbs, Susi Rigg and Rachel McCabe have created some admirable apparel from gold threads to local ethnic attire.

This is a classic play that calls for tight direction, good interpretation and excellent teamwork. Here we have a talented cast giving us a production to remember.