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Murder at the Rehearsal - directed by Jo Fosker
"I'm at so pleased that Phoenix Theatre Company are back again for the second year in their new home at Sandon Village Hall. It is always great to see so many new members acting on stage and with a sold out show. The hall was packed full with an anticipatory audience; they really entered into the spirit of the piece, oohing and ahhing each time someone went out of an entrance to possibly be murdered. They were almost as entertaining as the actors on stage!
Only having two Saturdays to perform, with each time taking everything down, is not ideal. This premiered play certainly was a good choice, being set in a village hall during the society's rehearsal period. With a nod to Agatha Christie's 'And then there were none'; gradually all the cast, one by one, were killed off. The aim of the piece is to try and find out 'Who Done it!!!!' With only a few props and the actors own costumes, this certainly was an ideal piece to perform for Phoenix.
We meet Mary (Jenny Hillyard) the grand dame of the group, who thinks she is better than the rest and should be on the professional stage. Straight talking and totally ignoring the rest of the group, her remarks to others mean she is not well liked. When she is first to die, the story starts. Jenny was super in this role with wonderful facial expressions and clear projection. I loved the way she had got her character just right and really wished she had had more to do as she was one of the stand out performances.
Becky Smart as Jill Hardcastle was the Director of this group but really didn't seem to have any idea just how to do it. Becky was a strong choice giving us the type of director we have all woefully worked with at some time in our lives. This was a good performance from an experienced actress.
Iain Holding-Sutton as Alan seems not to really want to be with the group but keeps everyone bored with his useless information. Iain is a good actor to have on stage as he is a solid performer and never drops his lines or character. Lovely facial expressions from him when he constantly got fed up with what was happening.
Jenny Jeggo as femme fatal diva Kim Taylor wowed us with her leather trousers and tight leather dress. She obviously thinks like Mary that she is better than anyone else in the group. Jenny definitely fitted the bill for this role and I'm sure the audience loved seeing her on stage. A nice performance.
Detective Shaw played by experienced actor Kenton Church was again super in the role. Calm and self-assured you know with Kenton on stage you don't have to worry. Great twist at the end for his character. Another solid performance and I do hope we see him again on stage soon.
Smaller roles were played by Tina Cooper as Gemma Brooks, Kaz Tomlinson as Jackie Draycott, and Tina Cooper as the hilarious Caretaker Pat Spencer. The scene where she is dead and sat on to try to be revived by Rory Jones (Tonio Ellis) will live in my memory - as although dead she absolutely couldn't stop laughing until Tonio shoved her cap over her face. The audience loved it.
But the accolades have to go to scene stealing Tonio Ellis who was superb in the role of Rory Jones. Camp, waspish, with cruel quips he flounced around the stage giving us a master class on just how to work an audience. His confidence and energy plus his dark looks reminded me of an evil king in pantomime such was his self-assurance of the role. Congratulations Tonio you made the role your own.
Phoenix Director Jo Fosker had worked hard with all the actors making sure that every actor projected well and got their characterisation just right.
My only problems with this well-rehearsed show was the sound quality and the almost basic lighting. I know that getting in on the day is not ideal and the group don't have a lot of equipment but there were times when at least one or two were not lit which was a shame. It really would have given the show a more professional look but I do understand the problems you have at the moment. Hopefully as you grow you will be able to have more time to get in and fine tune. This certainly was a fun night out and a good choice for this group. We look forward to seeing what you do next."
Christine Davidson-NODA
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