Moulton Drama Group MDG www.mdg.org.uk

"Don't Dress For Dinner " by Marc Camoletti , adapted by Robin Nawden

The Play

This is one of many successful comedies/ farces written byCamoletti and as with all boulevard theatre demands strong characterisation and fast pace. In this production the location has been changed from Paris to a farmhouse in Cheshire and this change worked very well indeed. It did not affect the farcical events of the storyline at all.

Direction( Steve Gurr).

The first night of this production was very successful despite the anxieties encountered the previous week.. It must be nail-biting to have one of the main players unable to take part but your stand-in managed extremely well and the rest of the cast carved on regardless. Well done! Action flowed nicely and was increasinglypacey throughout the first half . Momentum was lost in the last fifteen minutes of the performance on the first night but I am sure that would be rectified during the run . lt was simply a matter of some characters ruminating and elongating thought processes too much when in fact the tempo should still have been building. All movement around the stage was expertly orchestrated creating the illusion that the stage was much bigger than it actually was. This was a very funny and entertaining evening,*, roles were played strongly and there was good build up to those important "moments" within the action. There was evidence of very good direction here with attention to the detaill required off com edy,(c asting and costuming in particular). The audience were well rewarded in this opening performance.

The Set. (Sheila Hetherington and Team)

The set did indeed took like a Cheshire farmhouse conversion The red suite set against the background of the brick wall created a warm atmosphere The fact that the main furniture was on the thrust of the stage allowed for stage business behind. The kitchen swing door was ideally sited and there was even room for the necessary bar! I loved the detail of the small round windows.[ You did not have to paint in every brick in the wall, did you?] The style of the wooden front door completed the effect. This indeed was a very desirable residence.
Lighting and Sound [Steve Birtwisle & Bev Slobom.] There were no mishaps in these areas Lighting was warmly atmospheric and practical lights timed accordingly on request. Sound FX consisted of the door bell and telephone and all worked on cue. I was not able to hear if there were farmyard animal sounds because of the enthusiastic applause from the audience! Sorry! But from that response all the hours of preparation did pay off.

Props. (Gill Birtwisle)

In most farces a soda syphon is usually somewhere on the set and it is usually used to douse someone unexpectedly, if the moment is to work. Yes, here was a syphon on the set and it was used several times to good effect. The choice of furniture was admirable: comfortable looking and pleasing on the eye befitting a rural setting. There were quite a number of personal props to be found, some quite awkward such as the one hundred pound notes (they did just pass muster) the sauce in the bowl (which worked very well) and the paper shopping bags. It was good to see that these did look full , heavy and awkward to carry. Good attention to detail here.

Costume (Lynda Bantock)

Every costume suited the character and there were some stunning outfits worn by the ladies that really held our attention. Jacqueline looked very much the wife of a prosperous business man:: her lovely dinner dress fitted her perfectly .1 guess the clothes belonged to the actors themselves because they all looked comfortable with what they wore. The white coat was stunning it certainly looked as if it cost a great deal. Suzette was transformed when her skirt became her dress; the moments when she was being de-clothed were very funny. Likewise when Suzanne entered from the kitchen dressed very haphazardly as the maid it was a moment to remember. The men's outfits were befitting the characters; Bernard smart casual; Robert a little more formal. It was a great idea to put George in a motorcycle outfit. because it did make him look rather threatening. The costumes really enhanced the production.

The Cast

Bernard [Andy Jordan ]
This performance was a great lesson in the art of comedy acting. Energy levels were high and all stage business timed to perfection. This actor instinctively upheld or changed the tempo of the scene that he was in and his facial expressions added much to the humour of the evening. His adrenalin was flowing yet he kept it well under control. Bernard was verywatchable and Andy's work was outstanding within a team of talented actors.

Jacqueline. [Helen Ley]
Jacqueline is quite a sophisticated character with an air of snobbery about her and Helen did capture this side of her nature She looked down her nose at others quite a lot and asserted her authority over proceedings whenever possible. Facial reactions were very appropriate most of the time but eye levels were rather repetitive, looking upward a great deal when direct eye contact with others would have been more effective and would have strengthened her inter-action with them. Movement around stage was very confident and she looked wonderful in all of her outfits which added to the visual comedy of her looking in control when all about her were losing theirs. Care must be taken not to " savour" some of the words too much as the elongating of vowels can result in the slowing down of pace at the wrong moments It did happen to some degree towards the end of the performance when Jacqueline was trying to unravel some of the explanations that Bernard and Robert were offering her. Despite this observation this actress contributed much to the success of this production and I look forward to seeing her in other roles.

Robert [Dave Claffey]
Here was the put-upon friend who found himself in a great dilemma when arriving at his friend's house for the weekend, hoping to relax and catch up on old times, but finding out his friend had other ideas! This role was a great contrast to that of Bernard Ia steadying influence one might say despite the fact he had embarked on an affair with Bernard's wife!). Their scenes together were fast moving and slid. Dave's handling of the dialogue and it's spooneristic tendencies was excellent as was the physical /movement aspects of the role on a rather small stage. He certainly hit the right notes in this comedy.

Suzette [Sharon Caffrey]
Despite having to use the book on one or two occasions because of taking over the role at short notice this was a nicely judged comedy performance that had the audience laughing a great deal. Sharon deserves congratulations. The innocent air that she gave to Suzette in the early stages of the play was very appealing yet as the events and action became more frantic the more knowing she became and a baser, opportunist side of her nature shone through! Her reactions and facial expressions added to thehumour. The transformation from cook to niece was amazing and then the glamour girl took over.! By the time she was involved with the dance sequence and the moves in and out of the kitchen I suspect Sharon was enjoying the role. She served the rest of the cast well in what must have been an unnerving experience also.

Suzanne [Sarah Flannery]
I really enjoyed the subtleties within this performance. The "dumb blonde" attitude to her situation was never forced or overdone; it was given a lightness of touch that worked well.. Her entrance where she had tried to dress as the cook was a lovely moment.,extremely funny, with a "Why am I doing this?" look on her face.As she became more harassed with her situation she actually earned our sympathy. It added to the humour that she was dressed in creamlwhite.too. She had the opportunity to give vent to her frustrations more in the second act and again a great sense of timing was evident. This was a very pleasing performance.

George [Peter Collins]
This character established himself immediately. He had an imposing presence and it was a great idea to dress him in motor cycle gear. He was the catalyst to even more invention in the storyline just when we thought it could not get any more complicated. Again there was good casting here and the fight scene that ensued was well choreograped for the space available. This character was played with great conviction.

As you can see from my observations I really enjoyed the evening. Thank you for making me feel so welcome. I hope the rest of the week went well.

Evette Harper
October 2005