The Stables Theatre and Arts Centre
The Bourne, Hastings
East Sussex TN34 3BD
01424 423221
The Bourne, Hastings
East Sussex TN34 3BD
01424 423221
A Phoenix Too Frequent
By Christopher Fry
A Stables Theatre production
Directed by Lita Brooker
The Dark Lady of the Sonnets
By George Bernard Shaw
A Stables Theatre production
Directed by Leslie Adams
21–29 September 2007
Reviewed by Philip Blurton
By Christopher Fry
A Stables Theatre production
Directed by Lita Brooker
The Dark Lady of the Sonnets
By George Bernard Shaw
A Stables Theatre production
Directed by Leslie Adams
21–29 September 2007
Reviewed by Philip Blurton
High romance dramatically overtook events at the final performance of The Dark Lady of the Sonnets by George Bernard Shaw and A Phoenix Too Frequent by Christopher Fry. As the final bows were taken, Matt Turpin, manfully playing the Roman soldier Tegeus, opposite Zola Thomas as the widow Dynamene, stepped forward, offered an engagement ring and proposed marriage. The audience and the actress gasped, before the former broke into spontaneous applause and the latter into tears, of joy!
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The Dark Lady of the Sonnets
To the plays though: both focused on the turn of events that followed unexpected meetings. In the first, William Shakespeare comes upon Queen Elizabeth I, portrayed with a fine imperiousness by Dorothy Barlow, and mistakes her for his mistress Mary. In the second, the recently bereaved Dynamene, along with her perkily amusing servant Doto (Veronica Ollero), are chanced upon by a Roman soldier. Both plays were written to make us laugh, as man’s noble intentions for honour and duty quickly fall short in the face of love and desire. Life is for living and loving, and Dynamene’s best intentions to die alongside her dead husband come to nothing in the presence of a handsome soldier offering attention and wine. And for William Shakespeare, his brazen effrontery to the Virgin Queen is quickly diffused by his smooth tongue and flattery, which was eloquently delivered by Terence Hattemore.
Sometimes an evening at the theatre is dominated by a particular performance, and this was the case last Saturday. Zola Thomas gave a compelling portrayal as Dynamene. The complex phrasing and language of Christopher Fry was delivered with the full sense of its meaning, eliciting its humour and wry compassion for the human condition. Zola used her voice, her flowing costume and strong physical presence to convince us all that it was perfectly reasonable to donate her dead husband’s body to get her new love out of a spot of bother—Tegeus having mislaid the corpse of a felon he was supposedly guarding while chatting up Dynamene in the tomb. But such is life, isn’t it?
Both plays benefited from a clever block set designed by Cliff Brooker, which was reconfigured in the interval from Shakespearean England to Ancient Rome. Fine costumes were a pleasure to look at, though beware a Shakespearean cloak that seemed to restrain actions rather than free up Will as a swaggering lady’s man. Roland Garrad as the Beefeater and Veronica Ollero as Doto both drew some hearty laughs from their more down-to-earth roles, and Sarah Quinnell, as Mary, gave a composed and natural performance as Will’s mistress—great period hairdo too.
The challenge for the two directors, Leslie Adams and Lita Brooker, was to bring out the subtle nuance of complex lines, in a conversational and accessible manner. We laughed during the performances, but could we have laughed more? Congratulations though to Lita Brooker, who took a challenging play for her directing debut at the Stables and achieved such an accomplished production. Congratulations too for the marvellous piece of upstaging by Matt Turpin, who had the courage of his straightforward Roman soldier to propose on stage to his Mrs and give us all that extra value from our £5.50 Stables member ticket price. What a bargain and a sublime end to the evening.
Expand
The Dark Lady of the Sonnets
Sometimes an evening at the theatre is dominated by a particular performance, and this was the case last Saturday. Zola Thomas gave a compelling portrayal as Dynamene. The complex phrasing and language of Christopher Fry was delivered with the full sense of its meaning, eliciting its humour and wry compassion for the human condition. Zola used her voice, her flowing costume and strong physical presence to convince us all that it was perfectly reasonable to donate her dead husband’s body to get her new love out of a spot of bother—Tegeus having mislaid the corpse of a felon he was supposedly guarding while chatting up Dynamene in the tomb. But such is life, isn’t it?
Both plays benefited from a clever block set designed by Cliff Brooker, which was reconfigured in the interval from Shakespearean England to Ancient Rome. Fine costumes were a pleasure to look at, though beware a Shakespearean cloak that seemed to restrain actions rather than free up Will as a swaggering lady’s man. Roland Garrad as the Beefeater and Veronica Ollero as Doto both drew some hearty laughs from their more down-to-earth roles, and Sarah Quinnell, as Mary, gave a composed and natural performance as Will’s mistress—great period hairdo too.
The challenge for the two directors, Leslie Adams and Lita Brooker, was to bring out the subtle nuance of complex lines, in a conversational and accessible manner. We laughed during the performances, but could we have laughed more? Congratulations though to Lita Brooker, who took a challenging play for her directing debut at the Stables and achieved such an accomplished production. Congratulations too for the marvellous piece of upstaging by Matt Turpin, who had the courage of his straightforward Roman soldier to propose on stage to his Mrs and give us all that extra value from our £5.50 Stables member ticket price. What a bargain and a sublime end to the evening.
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Photographs > www.artypharty.com
A selection of production photographs from the 1950s to the present is available at our photographer Peter Mould’s website.
A selection of production photographs from the 1950s to the present is available at our photographer Peter Mould’s website.
