'Relatively Speaking' review

Malvern Festival Theatre

RELATIVELY SPEAKING (Theatre Royal Bath Productions)

It’s over four years since Alan Ayckbourn’s hilarious comedy, ‘Relatively Speaking’, had its last airing at Malvern Festival Theatre and the new tour is playing to packed houses again. This tale of mistaken identities and miscommunication continues to delight the audience, evident by the raucous laughter throughout the evening.

Set in the late 60’s, when it was originally written, the play opens in a small London basement flat as young lovers Greg and Ginny prepare for their day. Mysterious phone calls, copious amounts of flowers and hidden chocolates create a great deal of interest for Greg who decides to follow his girlfriend on her day trip, out of the city, to visit family. The action moves to a beautiful house in the country where we meet Philip and Sheila, a retired married couple who harbour suspicions about each other’s lives. Before long Greg arrives, later followed by Ginny, and stories unravel causing linguistic mayhem and utter confusion on all parties prior to, during and after Sunday lunch.

The ‘cheeky’, Max Bennett confidently plays Greg, titillating onlookers, in the first scene, as he bears all! The articulation of his accent made delivery of the wordy dialogue difficult to understand at times but not to the detriment of his overall performance. The stunning, Kara Tointon, more known for her television work, definitely showed her metal as a brilliant stage performer, in the role of Ginny, and one of whom I hope we see much more. Her strong vocal and physical performance were a delight to watch and she commanded the stage with ease, even when in the presence of seasoned professionals, Felicity Kendal and Jonathan Coy, who were simply brilliant in their respective roles of Sheila and Philip.

Lindsey Posner perfectly directs this crowd-pleasing play, with impressively substantial sets designed by Peter McKintosh, produced by the fantastic Theatre Royal Bath Productions, but be quick if you want to see it because tickets are selling like hot cakes! Relatively Speaking runs until Saturday.

'Little Shop Of Horrors' review

Malvern Forum Theatre

LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS (Malvern Theatres Young Company)

Horrific delights await audiences at Malvern Theatres this week courtesy of their Young Company's production of Little Shop Of Horrors. A joyously talented cast present Alan Menken's awesome musical, the first of hopefully many that we will get to enjoy over the coming years.

Director, Andy Reiss, showcases a wealth of young talent who tell the story of a man eating plant that mysteriously appears in Downtown Skid Row, following a sudden and unexpected, total eclipse of the sun, that results in a murderous, bloody rampage on local residents.

Douglas V. Watts is brilliant as the underdog, Seymour, who's wonderful vocals are effortlessly matched by the delightful Abbie Steele playing the downtrodden Audrey, the unknown recipient of Seymour's affections. Both suffer the cantankerous, flowershop owner, Mr Mushnik, a challenging role that Jacob Kippng attacks with gusto. Matthew Heels is suitably obnoxious as Audrey's sadistic boyfriend, Orin the dentist, and is the first to fall foul of the ferocious plant, Audrey II, to whom Liam Brown gives a superb soulful voice. Bryony-Rose Ward, Jo Edwards and Charlotte Heels give a slick, confident performance and handle the difficult harmonies with ease in their respective roles of the perky trio - Crystal, Ronette and Chiffon. A great ensemble also features some lovely comedic cameos and show off Katie Leeming's effective choreography. Hats off too to Musical Director, David Lane, for accomplishing such a pleasing sound from the cast in such a short time and to his band for bringing to life the fantastic score.

Everyone involved with this show must be congratulated on producing a thoroughly enjoyable night out. Support this inspiring company of young performers by seeing Little Shop of Horrors before it finishes on Sunday.

'Volcano' review

Malvern Festival Theatre

VOLCANO (Bill Kenwright Productions)

Believed to be based on the Bond writer, Ian Flemming’s martial transgressions, Volcano is one of Noel Coward’s lesser know plays, mostly due to the scandalous content, which censors of the time would have struggled with approving for public consumption. Nowadays, however, the issue of infidelity and broken relationships is all too frequently plastered over glossy magazine covers in a desperate attempt to increase readership and satisfy the need of some to revel in other’s trials and tribulations.

Set on the fictional Pacific island of Samolo, Simon Scullion’s set design beautifully replicates the Colonial home of Adela Shelley, subtly portrayed by the iconic Jenny Seagrove. This idyll is often frequented by playboy, ‘Guido’ Littleton, suavely played by Jason Durr, whose desperate attempts to sleep with Adela are thwarted by her at every turn. Emotions run high with the imminent arrival of Guido’s long-suffering wife, Melissa, played by Dawn Steele, who perfectly explores the vulnerability of this poor lady that exists with the tour-de-force façade. Focused on the affair of which she suspects her husband to be embroiled, she fails to notice the blossoming romance developing with Perdita Avery’s beautiful Ellen Danbury, who’s vocal performance is a wonderful homage to Coward and superbly matched by her awkward husband, Keith, played by Tim Daish. The arising conflicts are mimicked in nature with volcanic disturbance and despite the optimistic attempts of kindly neighbours, Grizelda and Robin, adoringly characterised by Finty Williams and Robin Sebastian, things come to a head as the volcano erupts.

This is a gentle play that doesn’t really get going until the second act. Roy Marsden’s direction is a joy to watch as he cleverly changes the audience’s visual perspective through simple, yet effective staging (and up-staging) and creates lovely tableaux throughout the story. Mike Robertson’s lighting and, the appropriately named, Matthew Bugg’s sound evoked the ideal ambience and backdrop. This play has some classic, cutting Coward quips and gives insight into another side of this iconic writer. Volcano runs until Saturday.