Global Productions

Art By Yasmina Reza, translated by Christopher Hampton Serge has bought a modern painting for a huge sum of money. His best friends, Marc and Yvan are divided in their opinion. Marc hates it and thinks it’s a complete waste of money. Yvan attempts, unsuccessfully, to placate both sides. If your friendship is based on tacit mutual agreement what happens when one person does something completely different and unexpected?

The question is: Are you who you think you are or are you who your friends think you are? Art sees the return to Harlow Playhouse of the talented Global Productions, whose previous productions include Pygmalion, Lord Arthur Savile’s Crime (both of which were enormous hits at the world famous Minack Theatre in Cornwall), An Inspector Calls, and the award-winning Educating Rita.

Cast:

Yvan – Dave Millard
Serge – Keith Cummings
Marc – Richard Hollis

Review at Harlow Playhouse By Chris Moss (Harlow Star)
Provoking thought on art of friendships

Art is a tragicomic social drama which has Almost become a self-sustaining industry, achieving astonishing international success yet remaining as frustratingly divisive among critics as its subject matter. 

At its heart ia a brilliantly simple concept about art and friendship, with three close friends forced to reassess their relationships after squabbling over the artistic worth of a modernist painting.

The purchaser of said painting, self-confessed modernist Serge (played with great assurance by Keith Cummings), has paid a small fortune for the piece – a large white canvas with several, well, white diagonal lines-and sees it as money well spent. But his friend Marc (the ever brilliant Richard Holliss) disagrees, unceremoniously rubbishing the work and taking a perverse pleasure in ribbing his old chum while extolling the superior virtues of classicism.

Completing the triumvirate is Yvan ( a show-stealing performance from David Millard), Whose attitude towards the piece is ambivalent at best -besides, he has far greater concerns with a wedding looming and a disgruntled mother to appease.
Some see Yasmina Reza’s play as a debate on aesthetics, other on the place of art in society, while many will view it as a very human drama with art merely the catalsyt for self-scrutiny.

Ultimately, it doesn’t have much to do with art at all – It may appear to be the play’s subject, but it’s treated just as that, a topic of conversation inviting differing opinions and interchangeable with race, religion, politics and even football. What the plays does, like the painting, is to provoke – a reaction, a conversation, an argument – and in this it exceeds its humble premise spectacularly, beautifully illustrating the complexities of friendship and the bizarre power struggles of give and take in which we all participate every day.

In less capable hands, it could have descended into and ugly slanging match, but director Michael Phillips ably steered the production into calmer waters of comedy drama without sacrificing pathos.

by Alan Acykbourn

Cast

Paul —————————- Mark Simons
Diana ——————Amanda Cummings
John ———————— Matthew Jones
Evelyn —————————– June Gray
Colin ———————–Keith Cummings
Marge—————————– Elaine Elliott

Director Michael Philips
Lights and sound Dave Mason
assisted Christopher Powell
Prompt Jill Atkins

Publicity Designed 
David Millard

Review
By Phyl Romeril (Waltham Forest Guardian)

Who needs friends such as the motley collection gathered by Alan Ayckbourn to comfort the grieving Colin after the death of a much loved fiancee? This play, one of Ayckbourn’s earlier creations, is a dubious piece of humour, it makes us uneasy and has us cringing in our seats.

Even so it presents a clear picture of real people with their marital problems and a disability to relate and whose good intentions so often rebound disastrously. In the studio theatre at Harlow, Global Theatre Company set up an interesting living room scene for the appropriate era and overcame certain age differences with the expertise of the members who rallied round at short notice to fill an unexpected gap.
Briefly, we faced with a dilemma: a bevy of friends who have never met the deceased fiancee arrange a tea party in order to lift Colin’s spirits and help him to come to terms with his bereavement.

Mark Simons was a restless and energetic Paul. Amanda Cummings was an emotional and suspicious Diana . John was projected by Matthew Jones as a carefree husband of the non-communicative Evelyn, a role which June Gray handled well. Elaine Elliott Sympathetically portrayed Marge, a motherly, fussy lady who had a husband who was permanently ailing.

What a depressing bunch of friends. By the time Colin arrives a tense situation exits and the only relaxed and happy one among them was the bereaved Colin. Keith Cummings deftly turned the tables as he analysed their problems in such a way as to cause each to break down.

The humour in this play was of mixture of pathos, comedy and farce. The action was always ongoing, there were no grey areas of note. Michael Philips directed.

An evening of readings about Britain, portraying the country at the end of the war and the reactions.

Carlo Goldoni
Adapted by Lee Hall

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Synopsis

When the trickster, Truffaldino, signs on to serve two masters at once in the hope of double wages and double dinners, chaos and hilarity ensue. Full of mistaken identities, broken engagements, re-united lovers and dodgy servants, this is classic comedy at its best.

Cast List

In order of appearance

Pantaloon	David Millard
Clarice	Jennifer Dorian
Silvio	Lee Ocsko
Dr Lombardi	Chris Millington
Smeraldina	Emily Johanna Grace
Brighella	Simon Billig
Truffaldino	Dave Perry
Beatrice	Lucy Ashton
Florindo	David Reed
Porter / Waiter	Terry Perkins
Charlie – First Waiter	Dominic Kinnaird
Waiter	Elaine Elliott
Music arranged and played – Clarini	John Candor
Produced and Directed	Michael Philips
Lights and Sound	David Mason
Stage Manager	Tony Mohammad
Crew	Tony Dorian, Richard Farrer, David Churchley
Fight scenes arranged	Dominic Kinnaird
Dance arranged	Jacky Logan
Costumes	Chrissy Fryers
Set	David Mason, Bob Pamplin
Set painted	Kay Pamplin
Props	Simon Billig, Elaine Elliott, Chrissy Fryers
Publicity	Terry Perkins

Review

Carlo Goldoni’s 1746 farcical Italian comedy The Servant To Two Masters included a number of scenes that relied heavily on improvisation. This was par for the course as the play embraced a style of theatrical form known as the commedia dell’arte (comedy of the profession), which had dominated European theatre for almost three hundred years. A true definition of commedia dell’arte was a play that relied on stock characters, (or what we now refer to as stereotypes) and exaggerated performances. The actor’s faces were usually concealed by masks, which gave playwrights an opportunity to poke fun at political and social events through witticisms and improvised dialogue.

Successfully making the transition into both ballet and music, it was also not unusual to see satirical sideswipes at class and religion. Although this particular form of theatre is now considered obsolete, it could be argued that the commedia dell’arte still exists today in the guise of the pantomime. Certainly the convoluted plot of A Servant To Two Masters demands a pantomimic approach. Beatrice travels to Venice disguised as her dead brother Federigo in order to track down his killer Florindo, who also happens to be her lover. She seeks the dowry money from Pantaloon the father of Clarice to whom her brother was betrothed. Thinking Federigo dead, Clarice however, wants to marry Dr. Lombardi’s hotheaded son Silvio. So Federigo’s unexpected ‘return’ from the grave is a terrible shock. This is by way of a sub-plot to the scheming of Beatrice’s servant Truffaldino. Meeting up with Florindo he sees the chance to make more money and fill his aching belly (popular themes in this sort of comedy) by serving two masters instead of one. But chaos ensues when Truffaldino mixes up letters intended for each of his two employers, both of whom spend most of the play unaware of each other’s existence.

A few years after its debut, Goldoni concerned about what he called the decadence of the commedia dell’arte style, substituted the improvised scenes with scripted dialogue. And it’s this version that playwright Lee Hall (Billy Elliot: The Musical) adapted for his own 1999 Young Vic and RSC production. Hall’s interpretation, rather than Goldoni’s has been dusted off by the Global Theatre Company as this year’s entry for the Minack Theatre’s summer season. But with the date for the Cornwall venue still some weeks off, a North London audience was recently treated to a sneak preview at the Harlow Playhouse in Essex. Opting for the main auditorium, rather than the intimate confines of the studio –and with a minimal, but functional set – the entire cast deserved full credit for managing to fill the theatre’s cavernous space with a performance that was both entertaining and energetic. And even though the use of masks was dropped, Chrissy Fryer’s dazzling costumes provided a fitting tribute to the visual style of the commedia dell’arte.

Actors David Millard and Chris Millington, as Pantaloon and Dr. Lombardi respectively, set the play in motion with sharp characterisation and fiery exchanges. Both these actors have tremendous stage presence. Millard’s penchant for physical comedy cut an imposing figure. His mane of unkempt hair and swirling red coat epitomising the style of the period, while his frantic machinations were a marvellous foil for co-star Millington’s memorable role as the blustering, pompous Lombardi. Jennifer Dorian played the demure Clarice with great feeling, her love for Silvio threatened by the sudden arrival of a ‘dead’ suitor and a pre-arranged marriage. Her spurned paramour Silvio also evoked our sympathies throughout, thanks to a consummate performance from actor Lee Ocsko.

But the strength of A Servant To Two Masters rests squarely on the shoulders of its chief protagonist, the wily and scheming servant, Truffaldino. And actor Dave Perry was perfect casting. In his Harlequinesque patchwork costume, he leapt about the stage, pirouetting and cartwheeling his way through the lives of those he encountered. It was a highly energised performance and a delight to watch. He does, however, ultimately meet his match in the form of ladies maid, Smeraldina. A feisty character from the outset with strong opinions on the opposite sex, Smeraldina was beautifully played by Johanna Grace.

Lucy Ashton was excellent in the dual role of Beatrice and Federigo. When she and lover Florindo – thinking each other dead –parody the denouement from Romeo and Juliet, it was carried out with great poignancy. And the scene in which the reunited lovers anticipated their upcoming nuptials was made all the more amusing by a total transformation of Florindo’s character (brilliantly played by David Reed) from stoicism to vulnerability. Simon Billig, with his amusing cod-Midlands accent pottered about the stage as local Innkeeper Brighella. And with the majority of the play’s more farcical moments taking place in the vicinity of his establishment, he was often aided and abetted by his three dysfunctional waiters, each of whom was played with tongue firmly in cheek by Terry Perkins, Dominic Kinnaird and Elaine Elliott. And the scene in which Truffaldino juggled dinner courses between his two unsuspecting masters offered plenty of scope for the minor characters to engage in additional business.

Solo musician John Candor provided live instrumental on a fittingly period Clarini, and was the only accompaniment to a rather sedate dance routine by Jacky Logan that top and tailed the play. Perhaps, on reflection, a faster tempo for the opening dance would have provided a more suitable curtain raiser for the madcap events that followed. And while Candor’s spirited playing was perfectly synchronised to the antics of the restaurant scene, the ‘tinkling’ melody seemed at odds with the sword fight – a tightly choreographed dual in which the cocky Silvio is out-maneuvered by Beatrice. The Servant To Two Masters requires precise timing and plenty of pace, while the script can only benefit from dialogue delivered with sharp, crisp enunciation. For the most part, award-winning director Michael Philips has achieved this goal and the production will no doubt leave the Minack audiences in stitches.

Bill Andrews ©2018

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by Alan Acykbourn

Synospis

The play takes place in 1985 and is centred around the Pendon Light Operatic Society (PALOS) rehearsals for John Gay’s The Beggar’s Opera. A widower, Guy Jones, joins the company and rapidly progresses through its ranks to play the lead in the final production. The story follows Guy as he encounters the various members of the society who all seem to have their own secret agenda to which Guy is naively oblivious. The play is juxtaposed with songs and scenes from The Beggar’s Opera.

Cast

Guy Jones………………………………….David Reed

Dafydd ap Llewellyn……………….Chris Millington

Hannah Llewellyn…………………………Elaine Elliot

Bridget Baines……………..Suzanne Macpherson

Mrs Ames…………………………….Desney Candor

Mr Ames…………………………………..John Candor

Enid Washbrook………………………….Rose Floyd

Rebecca Huntley-Pike…………….Melissa Quinn

Fay Hubbard……………………………..Lucy Ashton

Ian Hubbard…………………………………Lee Ocsko

Jarvis Huntley-Pike………………Sean Wilkinson

Ted Washbrook………………………….Simon Billig

Crispin Usher………………………………Dave Perry

Linda Washbrook…………………..Johanna Grace

Davina Taylor………………………..Alison Roberts

Raymond………………………………….Bob Pamplin

Cafe Manager………………………………..June Gray

Members of the Pendon Amateur Light Operatic Society:
Ellie Dennis, Ellen Madhani, Tanya Macpherson

Directed by Michael Philips

Production Credits

Sound and lights…………………………………..David Mason

assisted by……………………………………………….Rick Pascoe

Costumes…………………………………………Christine Fryers

Stage Manager……………………………….Tony Mohammad

assisted by…….Phyl Baker, Jane Ellison, Richard Baker

Publicity……………………………………………….Terry Perkins

Dances arranged by………………………………. Jacky Logan

Set constucted by……….Dave Mason and Bob Pamplin

Front of House… Bob Pamplin, Emma Pamplin, Doreen Friend, Eilis Rafferty

Reviews

John Gay’s satirical piece The Beggar’s Opera features a highwayman called Macheath as its central character. With marriage, intrigue and subterfuge as the key ingredients of the plot, is Macheath really the hero or anti-hero? Contemporary playwright Alan Ayckbourn considered this dilemma and the opera’s libertarian values as an interesting analogy for his highly acclaimed 1980s comedy A Chorus of Disapproval. With its sub-plot about an amateur operatic group staging a far from trouble-free adaptation of Gay’s Augustan drama, Ayckbourn’s play turns into an amusing study of middle class attitudes, family values and the ever present lure of adultery.

In A Chorus of Disapproval, we meet one Guy Jones, a seemingly innocent and inexplicably naive widower, who decides to combat his loneliness by joining the Pendon Amateur Light Operatic Society (PALOS for short). The mainspring of the group is Dafydd ap Llewellyn. Fiercely proud of his Welsh upbringing, he is also the driving force behind the staging of The Beggar’s Opera. “I’m absolutely convinced that this show (is) as entertaining and as vital as it was then”, he explains unapologetically to anyone who’ll listen.

Dafydd, as Guy soon discovers, wields a position of absolute power in PALOS, a group comprised of the usual Ayckbourn stock characters. “I wish to God they were professionals”, he confides in Guy at one point. “Then I could sack them.” By contrast, Guy is absurdly shy, yet soon finds himself the object of flattering attention from the female members of PALOS, including Dafydd’s own wife Hannah; the sexy and promiscuous Fay Hubbard; and the flirtatious Rebecca Huntley-Pike. Simultaneously, Guy’s importance to the production of The Beggar’s Opera quickly catapults him from a simple walk-on part as the villain ‘Crook-Finger’d Jack’ to the lead role.

A Chorus of Disapproval opens with a period costume, rip-roaring song and dance number straight out of Gay’s populist opera, followed by Dafydd thanking Guy for ‘stepping in’ and saving the show. Then in flashback we discover how it all began and whether Guy was in fact deserving of Dafydd’s unstinting praise. Is he the hero or the anti-hero?

In this Global Theatre Production, Chris Millington is superb in the role of Dafydd. His lyrical and totally convincing Welsh accent conjures up fond memories of a cosy fireside tea in the company of ‘Dai the Station’ and ‘Evans the Song’. And the scene in which he bursts into a Welsh rendition of All Through the Night (Ar hyd y nos) is heartfelt and poignant. As always, with this extremely talented actor, Chris slips back and forth between the comedy and drama with eloquent flourish.

‘Light baritone’ Guy Jones is in equally safe hands with actor David Reed. Like his chief co-star, here again is a performer who can effortlessly flesh out any character he plays and in A Chorus of Disapproval switches brilliantly between the innocent Guy and his alter ego Macheath.

Both are, of course, the lynchpin to the play’s success and so it’s vitally important that we the audience can empathise with their human frailties. In this production both actors excel with a brilliant mix of humour and pathos. Chris Millington successfully captures Dafydd’s restless spirit. David Reed, on the other hand, throws much light on Guy’s tortured soul.

Thanks to a subtle and emotive performance from Elaine Elliott as Hannah, we soon realise that all is not rosy in the ‘wings’ at PALOS. “I call her my Swiss Army Wife.” Dafydd jokes, blissfully unaware that she has amorous intentions towards Guy. Their meeting is nicely underplayed, and puts you in mind of a similar scene that occurred between frustrated housewife Belinda and playwright Clive, in Alan Ayckbourn’s wonderfully witty play Season’s Greetings.

But Hannah has a rival for Guy’s affections in the shape of the promiscuous Fay Hubbard. Lucy Ashton gives a marvellously lascivious performance as Fay and her fight with Hannah over a pair of rather snazzy looking boxer shorts in the starchy atmosphere of a Lyons Corner House-type café is hilarious. Fay’s husband Ian is played with a great deal of charisma by Lee Ocsko; an accomplished actor with a tremendous stage presence. Together with David Reed, Ashton and Ocsko’s partner-swapping party is one of the funniest scenes in the first act.

Suzanne Macpherson brilliantly brings the dominant stage manager Bridget Baines to life. “We couldn’t function at all without Bridget,” opines Dafydd. The daughter of the “cantankerous” landlord of the local watering hole where the group drinks after rehearsals, Bridget is already bedding the young and hostile Crispin Usher, much to the chagrin of eager young actress and rival for his love, Linda Washbrook. The arrogant Crispin is a memorable performance thanks to actor Dave Perry. He and Johanna Grace, the actress playing Linda, are definitely ‘leading light’ material.

Key among the supporting roles are the Huntley-Pike’s. Jarvis is the stereotypical knowing Northerner, whose constant references to Guy as a Scotsman is a nice piece of recurring humour, while his wife Rebecca is both confident and conniving. Both these characters benefit from the meticulous detail brought to the roles by actors Sean Wilkinson and Melissa Quinn.

Davina Taylor is played by Alison Roberts, an actress wonderfully adept at both drama and comedy, while Rose Floyd and Simon Billig are Enid and Ted Washbrook respectively. The occasional ‘victims’ of Dafydd’s wrath they are also the unfortunate parents of Johanna Grace’s delightfully gloomy Linda. Actress June Gray also lends her considerable expertise to the show, along with Bob Pamplin.

Global Productions’ A Chorus of Disapproval is a treat for both the eye and the funny bone. Director Michael Philips must be congratulated on choosing actors that work so splendidly as both an ensemble cast and in individual roles. Under Michael’s guidance, the opening and closing dance number is both catchy and toe-tapping with some stylish choreography by Jacky Logan. There’s sterling support from Dave Mason, whose lighting is used to hilarious, but ultimately poignant effect in the scene in which Dafydd grapples with lighting cues, while Guy and Hannah noisily debate their illicit love affair while dodging the glare of the spotlights.

Costumes are contemporary – well 1980s – but the sumptuous look of the staged 18th century opera sequences are an explosion of colour and design thanks to the costumes created by Christine Fryers, with some assistance from Christine Holliss. Last, but certainly not least, is the excellent musical accompaniment chosen by Michael Philips and provided by the skilled playing of Desney and John Candor.

This production was a huge success at the Harlow Playhouse earlier this month and there’s no doubt that the demand for tickets will be just as high when it opens at the Minack Theatre in Cornwall on July 6th. © Richard Holliss

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A Chorus of Disapproval – Review
Global Theatre Company
reviewed by Jenni Balow

Sir Alan Ayckbourn had been directing plays for many years before he hit on the idea of writing a comedy about the entertainment to be had behind the scenes of a typical amateur dramatic company – and it was met by a chorus of approval from both actors and the audience.

A Chorus of Disapproval was first presented in Scarborough in 1984, was quickly transferred to the National Theatre in London, filmed four years later, and picked up many top awards along the way.

It is now a favourite with am-dram groups around the world, giving actors the chance to play out what comes naturally, both on and off stage, brilliantly funny on the surface, with darker issues beneath.

It is a natural choice for the Essex based Global Productions and director Michael Philips, who often specialise in contemporary drama. And this group of actors embrace the script with enthusiasm.

The play within a play is concerned with rehearsals and casting for The Beggar’s Opera which is being presented by a light operatic society where the actors have an established pecking order and their own agendas both backstage and up front.

But the arrival of a diffident newcomer and widower Guy Jones (David Reed) sets up a new dynamic within the group when the play’s earnest director Dafydd (Chris Millington) takes him under his Welsh wing and gives him a bit part.

Guy is tense and determined, with knees pressed tightly together, but several of the women in the cast give him the once-over and reckon they need to change that persona – and he is only too happy to respond.

A sub-plot involves a land acquisition, and he becomes unwittingly involved at the excellently played hands of go-getting Ian (Lee Ocsko) and his willing wife Fay (Lucy Ashton).

In the meantime the finely cast Dafydd is getting increasingly frustrated with the slow progress of rehearsals, after 10 days, they are still on page 15 of the script, while his Swiss Army wife “no man should be without one” Hannah (Elaine Elliott) is seeking consolation from Guy.

All this is not improving the temper of the dragon-like stage manager Bridget (Suzanne Macpherson) who roars her disdain along with know-it-all cast member Rebecca (Melissa Quinn) before it all ends in tears.

Music director and on-stage pianist is Ruby Ames, playing alongside clarinetist Bob Ames, with costumes designed and made by Chrissy Fryers for this fun production that wins approval all round.

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Cast List

May ………………Suzanne Macpherson
Tom……………………………….Dave Perry
Arthur……………………..Stephen Balchin
Reggie………………………Jay Shotter
Ralph…………………………….Mark Simons
Eve………………………………Jennifer Gillin
Annie…………………………….Elaine Elliott
Sarah………………….. Tanya Macpherson
Bertha……………………………Abigail Baker
C.S.M Rivers…………………..Chris Millington

Director……………….Michael Philips
Sound and Lights ………………David Mason
Set constructed…………….David Mason & Bob Pamplin
Costumes…………..Christine Fryers
Stage Manager………………Phyl Baker
Music arranged…………………Chris Millington
Publicity…………………..Terry Perkins

Email from a member of the audience

I came to see Accrington Pals at the Playhouse on Thursday evening. I thought it was very clever that with so few actors there was a real sense of more people being involved. It was very moving. There were quite a few people with learning disabilities in the audience, members of Razed Roof Theatre Group. They were really into the play too as was a lady who sat near to me whose Great Grandfather was an Accrington Pal. Well done.

Review: The Accrington Pals

Your Harlow – Date posted: 30-11-2014

THE ACCRINGTON Pals is not an easy play to perform. The Peter Whelan play charts the life of ordinary Lancastrians before they went off to war in 1914.

Life is pretty grim at home and it is about to get grimmer.

The whole play is held together by the matriarchal May, played by Sue Macpherson. Sue pitches the part perfectly as May tries to keep mind and body together as well as a fear and yearning for young artist Tom, played by David Baker. David also performed very well as the young artist with burning desire and a lust for life.

It was the shadow of inevitability that hangs over the piece and the production, thanked to the design of the set and the pace and judgement of director and actors that gave a claustrophobic feel.

But there was humour, often bawdy northern humour, an example of which was the performance of Eve by Jennifer Gillin. She conveyed a huge amount of warmth and emotion but with depth as well.

It is a long play, with many changes, that require a great deal of discipline. The actors all interacted very well. Young actors such as Tanya Mcpherson and Abigail Baker were full of vitality whilst veterans (sorry Chris!) such as Chris Millington produced a haunting cameo role as the CSM.

As we look back on the Great War, sone of us don?t want chocolate box versions but rather gritty reflections such as The Accrington Pals.

A stirring end and well done to the director, Michael Philips, for his deft production.