Ray Cooney's
It Runs in the Family
Lindisfarne Players
12th-16th April 2016
The Dixon Studio at The Palace Theatre, Westcliff-on-Sea
It Runs in the Family
Lindisfarne Players
12th-16th April 2016
The Dixon Studio at The Palace Theatre, Westcliff-on-Sea
Nick Jacobs, Ben Smerdon, Ian Morton, Keith Chanter, Belinda Belt and Donna Gale
As a recent interview discovered, the multi-millionaire Essex playwright Ray Cooney may well be the wealthiest dramatist in British theatre history. On the strength of It Runs in the Family, nobody will begrudge Ray a penny of that loot.
Lindisfarne's production, directed by Steve McCartney, is classic Cooney – in other words, a well-oiled laughter machine. It Runs in the Family is set in a hospital, which may come in handy for those of us who injure our backs while rolling in the aisles.
Audiences know what to expect from Ray Cooney, and It Runs in the Family fully lives up to expectations. It is a tale of escalating subterfuge, choreographed by the gods of comic anarchy, which eventually drags most of a hospital and its staff into the mayhem.
All the tried and tested elements are here. It starts with the pompous authority figure (here an ambitious hospital consultant, played by Ian Morton) whose well-ordered world suddenly tumbles thanks to a past spot of rumpty-tumpty. Then there is the rather dim sidekick (Nicholas Jacobs), dragged under protest into the cover-up; the increasingly suspicious wife (Leah-May Keeble); the saucy lady from the past (here a frisky nurse, played by Carol Hayes), and a doctor with a penchant for dressing up in silly costumes (Ben Smerdon).
There is also the responsible managerial type, in this case a hospital matron most sportingly played by Belinda Belt, whose sense of duty leads to, among other things, being dropped from scaffolding, and injected in the bottom with 100mm of tranquilliser. How can things possibly not go into comic meltdown?
As always, too, the set is a big player. Graham Smerdon's design, which includes an upper-storey picture window, and, of course, numerous entrances and exits, gets worked to the hilt.
All these ingredients supply their usual magic. And while nobody goes to a Cooney farce for intellectual stimulation as such, there is a satisfaction that goes beyond the fun and the laughter. Even as you laugh, a portion of your brain is marvelling at the intricate mechanics of the farce machinery.
Lindisfarne has made a corner in staging Ray Cooney's plays, which have become something of an annual Southend tradition. They have built up an expertise in hectically staged farce which is once again in evidence. The handful of fluffs and missed cues on opening night will doubtless have been smoothed out by the time Ray Cooney himself arrives to see the show on Saturday.
The most important element in any effective farce is a sense of well-meshed ensemble playing. Because of this, I would not normally pick out one particular performance for mention. But Elliot Bigden, as Leslie - the delinquent illegitimate son scouring the hospital for the dad he never knew he had - is an exception. It stands out for its manic physical energy and exceptional comic timing.
Last year, this actor made a strong impression as Romeo. Now he has switched to the opposite end of the acting spectrum, in a role that in its own way, makes just as great demands.
Written by guest reviewer, Tom King
Tickets are available online at www.southendtheatres.org.uk or call the box office on 01702 351135
Lindisfarne's production, directed by Steve McCartney, is classic Cooney – in other words, a well-oiled laughter machine. It Runs in the Family is set in a hospital, which may come in handy for those of us who injure our backs while rolling in the aisles.
Audiences know what to expect from Ray Cooney, and It Runs in the Family fully lives up to expectations. It is a tale of escalating subterfuge, choreographed by the gods of comic anarchy, which eventually drags most of a hospital and its staff into the mayhem.
All the tried and tested elements are here. It starts with the pompous authority figure (here an ambitious hospital consultant, played by Ian Morton) whose well-ordered world suddenly tumbles thanks to a past spot of rumpty-tumpty. Then there is the rather dim sidekick (Nicholas Jacobs), dragged under protest into the cover-up; the increasingly suspicious wife (Leah-May Keeble); the saucy lady from the past (here a frisky nurse, played by Carol Hayes), and a doctor with a penchant for dressing up in silly costumes (Ben Smerdon).
There is also the responsible managerial type, in this case a hospital matron most sportingly played by Belinda Belt, whose sense of duty leads to, among other things, being dropped from scaffolding, and injected in the bottom with 100mm of tranquilliser. How can things possibly not go into comic meltdown?
As always, too, the set is a big player. Graham Smerdon's design, which includes an upper-storey picture window, and, of course, numerous entrances and exits, gets worked to the hilt.
All these ingredients supply their usual magic. And while nobody goes to a Cooney farce for intellectual stimulation as such, there is a satisfaction that goes beyond the fun and the laughter. Even as you laugh, a portion of your brain is marvelling at the intricate mechanics of the farce machinery.
Lindisfarne has made a corner in staging Ray Cooney's plays, which have become something of an annual Southend tradition. They have built up an expertise in hectically staged farce which is once again in evidence. The handful of fluffs and missed cues on opening night will doubtless have been smoothed out by the time Ray Cooney himself arrives to see the show on Saturday.
The most important element in any effective farce is a sense of well-meshed ensemble playing. Because of this, I would not normally pick out one particular performance for mention. But Elliot Bigden, as Leslie - the delinquent illegitimate son scouring the hospital for the dad he never knew he had - is an exception. It stands out for its manic physical energy and exceptional comic timing.
Last year, this actor made a strong impression as Romeo. Now he has switched to the opposite end of the acting spectrum, in a role that in its own way, makes just as great demands.
Written by guest reviewer, Tom King
Tickets are available online at www.southendtheatres.org.uk or call the box office on 01702 351135
Photos courtesy of Malcolm Toll