Pack of Three
Our February production was 3 one act plays. Read the NODA review here:
Two Wits to Woo by John Kelly. Director Sandra Capper.
Winsome Manor is in financial difficulties and widowed Lady Winsome needs to fire long-standing servants Joe the gardener and James the chauffeur. However, unbeknown to Lady Winsome, James has been using the estate’s Rolls Royce for a taxi business and Joe has been profiting from the garden produce. As the play unfolds, the two desperately attempt to prevent Lady Winsome from discovering their illicit dealings and from selling the Manor. But Lady Winsome is not so naïve…
The Sneeze by Anton Chekhov, (translated and adapted by Michael Frayn). Director Lynn Pegler.
Anyone who only associates Chekhov with tearful tragedies, will be surprised and delighted with this short, uproarious comic jewel. The Sneeze is one of eight little comedies which Frayn has combined into a full evening’s entertainment. Kingsley Players will be staging the title piece only. Rowan Atkinson premiered this version, in which a minor Government official sneezes on a very important Government official during a trip to the theatre. Sublime slapstick!
Caught on the Hop by David Foxton. Director Jo Oultram.
Returning home unexpectedly early after a rendezvous with her lover, Sophie Fontaineau finds that her husband Etienne is absent and immediately suspects him of philandering. She accidentally spills brandy on her porter’s trousers; the poor man soon finds himself trouserless behind a screen, desperately worried by the return of Etienne, who is disguised as the hunchback of Notre Dame. Further complications ensue when Etienne’s lover, “Esmeralda” appears and recognises the porter – now disguised as Sophie’s aged aunt – as her husband. Clothide, the long suffering maid, provides the final twist to this delightful comedy.
