Night Must Fall
Palace Theatre, Westcliff-on-Sea
31st October - 5th November 2016
8pm
Palace Theatre, Westcliff-on-Sea
31st October - 5th November 2016
8pm
A dark, damp, foggy Halloween evening certainly helped to evoke the atmosphere for the scene set before us in Night Must Fall's opening night at The Palace Theatre, Westcliff on Sea. Set inside a quaint cottage in a remote part of the woods, where, as one of Emlyn Williams' characters points out in the play, everything seems so 'ordinary' you could hardly imagine anything worse happening than perhaps a drunken brawl in the local hostelry.
Emlyn Williams wrote Night Must Fall in 1935 and, unlike your average 'murder mystery' production, this play was noted for its exploration of the central character's complex psychological state, considered to be a step forward for its genre. Robert Montgomery starred in the film version in 1937 and Albert Finney in the 1964 re-make.
The cottage in the production belongs to wheelchair-bound, Mrs Bramson (Gwen Taylor), a bitter, fussy, self-pitying elderly woman. Also residing with her is her poetry writing, intelligent, yet subdued niece, Olivia (Niamh McGrady). Mrs Bramson spends all her time complaining and is thoroughly disliked by her two servants, Dora (Melissa Vaughan), a young, sensitive maid and cook, Mrs Terrence (Mandi Symonds). It is when Dora confesses she has become pregnant by bell-boy Dan, who works in the village, that Mrs Bramson takes it upon herself to reprimand the fellow but somehow manages to be swept away by his charming manner. So enamoured is she with him, that she allows him to become her personal assistant. Inspector Belsize (Daragh O'Malley) of Scotland Yard turns up to inform the local residents that a woman has gone missing in the area and it's not long before the tension of the play really starts to kick in.
There are some impressive performances in this production, not least by Will Featherstone playing Dan, who has us completely gripped as we watch his character's many layers gradually peel away. The fact that the audience knows the identity of the murderer all along only makes the tension all the greater, as we witness his gradual disintegration, knowing that another murder is inevitable. That disintegration is handled so deftly and so poignantly that one is left, at the end of the play, almost feeling sympathy for him.
Featherstone is more than matched with a wonderful performance from Gwen Taylor as Mrs Bramson, who despite portraying her as the grumpy old bag that she is, still manages to make us laugh with some fabulously sarcastic one-liners. She also has the ability to draw you in to a scene, making you feel that you are living that moment for the very first time.
I enjoyed watching Alasdair Buchan as boring, City buffoon, Hubert who desperately wants to marry Olivia, beautifully and convincingly played by Niamh McGrady. Mandi Symonds as Mrs Terence has a peach of a part along with Melissa Vaughan as Dora. It was nice to see Daragh O'Malley as the Inspector who, I suspect (just like tv's Colombo) knew who the murderer was straight away. Of course, I have to give a special mention to Southend's very own Anne Odeke, who couldn't help but disguise her obvious delight at playing in front of a home crowd by displaying the hugest of grins at the curtain call. She made Nurse Libby a lovely, amusing character to watch.
One of the surprises of this play is, in fact, that it has quite a few laughs throughout which perfectly counteract the ensuing tension, aided by some subtle but nicely effective music, sound effects and clever use of lighting. There were certainly moments where audible gasps of surprise could be heard from the audience.
An interesting factor of this production is the way it turns the conventional 'whodunnit' completely on its head by transforming it into an acutely observed psychological thriller. Yes, we know who the murderer is almost immediately, but what becomes so fascinating is trying to understand what has made this seemingly affable fellow into the person he has become. As the tag line on the play's poster points out, "It's frightening to think what a face can hide".
For tickets go online to www.southendtheatres.org.uk or call the box office on 01702 351135
To read our interview with Anne Odeke who plays Nurse Libby click here
Emlyn Williams wrote Night Must Fall in 1935 and, unlike your average 'murder mystery' production, this play was noted for its exploration of the central character's complex psychological state, considered to be a step forward for its genre. Robert Montgomery starred in the film version in 1937 and Albert Finney in the 1964 re-make.
The cottage in the production belongs to wheelchair-bound, Mrs Bramson (Gwen Taylor), a bitter, fussy, self-pitying elderly woman. Also residing with her is her poetry writing, intelligent, yet subdued niece, Olivia (Niamh McGrady). Mrs Bramson spends all her time complaining and is thoroughly disliked by her two servants, Dora (Melissa Vaughan), a young, sensitive maid and cook, Mrs Terrence (Mandi Symonds). It is when Dora confesses she has become pregnant by bell-boy Dan, who works in the village, that Mrs Bramson takes it upon herself to reprimand the fellow but somehow manages to be swept away by his charming manner. So enamoured is she with him, that she allows him to become her personal assistant. Inspector Belsize (Daragh O'Malley) of Scotland Yard turns up to inform the local residents that a woman has gone missing in the area and it's not long before the tension of the play really starts to kick in.
There are some impressive performances in this production, not least by Will Featherstone playing Dan, who has us completely gripped as we watch his character's many layers gradually peel away. The fact that the audience knows the identity of the murderer all along only makes the tension all the greater, as we witness his gradual disintegration, knowing that another murder is inevitable. That disintegration is handled so deftly and so poignantly that one is left, at the end of the play, almost feeling sympathy for him.
Featherstone is more than matched with a wonderful performance from Gwen Taylor as Mrs Bramson, who despite portraying her as the grumpy old bag that she is, still manages to make us laugh with some fabulously sarcastic one-liners. She also has the ability to draw you in to a scene, making you feel that you are living that moment for the very first time.
I enjoyed watching Alasdair Buchan as boring, City buffoon, Hubert who desperately wants to marry Olivia, beautifully and convincingly played by Niamh McGrady. Mandi Symonds as Mrs Terence has a peach of a part along with Melissa Vaughan as Dora. It was nice to see Daragh O'Malley as the Inspector who, I suspect (just like tv's Colombo) knew who the murderer was straight away. Of course, I have to give a special mention to Southend's very own Anne Odeke, who couldn't help but disguise her obvious delight at playing in front of a home crowd by displaying the hugest of grins at the curtain call. She made Nurse Libby a lovely, amusing character to watch.
One of the surprises of this play is, in fact, that it has quite a few laughs throughout which perfectly counteract the ensuing tension, aided by some subtle but nicely effective music, sound effects and clever use of lighting. There were certainly moments where audible gasps of surprise could be heard from the audience.
An interesting factor of this production is the way it turns the conventional 'whodunnit' completely on its head by transforming it into an acutely observed psychological thriller. Yes, we know who the murderer is almost immediately, but what becomes so fascinating is trying to understand what has made this seemingly affable fellow into the person he has become. As the tag line on the play's poster points out, "It's frightening to think what a face can hide".
For tickets go online to www.southendtheatres.org.uk or call the box office on 01702 351135
To read our interview with Anne Odeke who plays Nurse Libby click here
We were invited to take some photos of the cast at Southend Theatres' Hide and Shriek
Photo credits Dave Hannington
Photo credits Dave Hannington
Alasdair, Will, Melissa & Darragh
Ask the Audience
Janet Cosgrove, 73, Shenfield
"I thought it was very well acted, especially the young man playing Dan (Will Featherstone). I also thought the cook was excellent. It was enjoyable watching the interaction between the character's classes. A really good production." |
|
Ross Clarke, 64, Leigh-on-Sea
"I enjoyed the tension in the second part of the play. There were some excellent performances, in particular Will Featherstone; it was interesting to watch the unravelling of his character. Gwen Taylor was superb." |