Saturday 17 May 2014

Theatre : Vicar of Dibley...



Yawn! Sorry to say I didn't enjoy this at all and my two theatre friends said much the same. The acting was poor with no real depth of the characters they were portraying and there were a few times when it seemed lines were not properly learnt. Too many bitty scenes and too long on the scene changes. Too many film clips which if they had been shown to distract from the stage hands moving stuff would have served a purpose but were not used like that more to just fill up time. Add to that the seats in this theatre actually make my feet go numb and FriendT's back hurt (can't blame that on the actors of course) then it all adds up to a bit of a letdown.

My two friends were almost tempted to leave at the interval but I really hate doing that in case it does get better and I've missed it and also feel it's quite demoralising for the cast to play to freshly vacated gaps in the audience.....and I was driving so we stayed ;-)

This is the review I found in the Ipswich24 Magazine and the reviewer was being quite kind I think....


When it comes to a stage production of a well-loved TV classic such as The Vicar of Dibley any company are instantly on dodgy ground as comparisons are drawn with the original, this is not so with the Two Rivers Theatre Company adaptation.
Drawing on three episodes from the award-winning series, producer Kay Friars has succeeded in a production that stands alone, even for those not familiar with the original tv version.
vicar
The three stories are, The Arrival (when the new vicar arrives), The Window and the Weather and the end-piece a hilarious almost slapstick Easter Bunny.
A stage production does not benefit from the luxury of tv in being able to flit from scene to scene easily.
The setting for the stories in this piece are, Dibley Village Hall, The Vicarage and the home of David Horton, the stage is divided into three parts for the various settings and scene changes are simply conveyed by the shifting of the lighting. The speed of the scene changes is the only criticism in the entire production as some are somewhat over slow and maybe more could have made of the film pieces to ease this transition.
This is quiet a large cast and it is probably unfair to single out individuals, however Val Eldridge turns in a very good portrayal of Rev Geraldine Granger which is very close to Dawn French’s original without being an imitation of Dawn.
Another who shines is Bex Nicholls as Alice Tinker, Bex excels in comedy roles and is ideally cast as the dizzy Alice.
That said all the actors turn in excellent performances and are a credit to the company.
This reviewer sees a lot of productions both professional and amateur and Two Rivers stands out as one of the more proficient companies where you are always guaranteed of a professionally executed and enjoyable evening.
– Mark Keable, Ipswich24 –

2 comments:

Michelle said...

there was a restaurant somewhere that allowed you to pay what you thought the meal was worth. Not sure if it was a permanent arrangement or if they are still in business! I wonder if theatres would try similar.

MumB / @mumbosh said...

Haha there was a fringe theatre (I think) that sold tickets on a pay what you can basis but that would still be money up front. Wonder if they ever made a profit. Glad this ticket was only£8.