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| Mortimer Dramatic Society. Based in St. John's Hall Mortimer, MDS is an amateur theatre company and has been presenting high quality plays and musicals and musical plays, to a professional standard, for the people of Mortimer and North Hampshire since 1951 |
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MDS has been presenting high quality
theatre and musical plays, to a professional standard, for the people
of Mortimer for over 50 years.
by Richard Harris
Friday,
May 2, Saturday, May 3,
Friday, May 9 and Saturday, May 10 2003
About The Play
Local Affairs is a play for four men and five women. Charles is having difficulty finding a suitable outfit for a fancy dress party, with little encouragement from Norma, whose mind is more on her new garden and fitted kitchen. His troubles, however, pall before those occurring in other households on the "superior" Housing development.
David's wife Hillary arrives home early from a week on a health farm
to find her interfering mother-in-law very much in residence, while at
number eleven Susan and Keith are unable to enjoy a weekend without their
kids, as Susan spends all her time worrying and Keith all his working
on his precious motorbike.
Further complications ensue with the arrival of an old flame of Keith's,
the suicidal Katy, who seems to hit it off with Peter, a doctor colleague
of Charles's, and the last straw is when Charles, now attired as Marlene
Dietrich, discovers that the party is actually the following week.
The play ingeniously uses the same set to represent all three houses.
The Review
From the Newbury Weekly News.
Recipe for confusionMortimer Dramatic Society: Local Affairs, at St John's Hall, Mortimer, on Friday, May 2, Saturday, May 3, Friday, May 9 and Saturday, May 10 Local Affairs is a comedy about three different families, each coping with their own problems in similar houses on a new development. So similar are the houses, in fact, that one set (kitchen, sitting-room, bedroom) serves for all three houses. And as the play progresses, the interaction between the three separate dramas - one couple battling with the husband's over-possessive mother, one struggling to prepare for a fancy-dress party, and one coping with their first separation from their young children - gradually become intertwined, with inevitable confusion all round. Richard Harris' script provides great opportunity for hilarity as the plot gathers pace. Mortimer Dramatic Society, under the direction of John Burbedge, rose to the challenge with great enthusiasm, though the relationships between the three central couples lacked credibility at times, which meant that some comic moments lost their impact and the pace dragged a little at times. Nevertheless, there were some fine performances. Tom Shorrock gave us some unforgettable moments as Charles the doctor, grudgingly parading himself as Marlene Dietrich, much to the consternation of the neighbours and of his wife Norma (Carol Burbedge). Darryl Manners, as the mother-fearing David, was nicely matched against Cathy Bowman as his long-suffering wife Hilary. Ross Williams was uncouth as biker Keith, while Marilyn Fleming handled the role of Keith's wife Susan with some sensitivity, particularly impressive as she had taken on the role with only 48 hours notice. But the evening really belonged to the cameo performers. Megan Bush gave a delightful portrayal of David's mother, at once deeply manipulative and obsessively enthusiastic about the latest TV gossip. Helen Sharpe was hilarious as Katy, Keith's old flame who turns up on the doorstep following the failure of her latest relationship. And Graham Jerome, as the lecherous dandy Peter, was a joy to watch as he closed in despicably on the hapless Katy. The three-part set worked well, and the costumes and props reflected the 1980s setting quite accurately. Despite a few problems with the pace, it was a very entertaining evening performed to a packed house. MARK LILLYCROP |
Did you see the show? If so, what did you think? We'd love to hear from
you so why not e-mail us with your review?
To E-Mail MDS click here 
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