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Cast |
| Edward Halliday |
Dave Barber |
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| Joanna Halliday |
Val Howell |
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| Colonel Barnes-Bradley |
Gordon Berry |
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| Nicholas Barnes-Bradley |
Steve Beal |
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Directed by Yvonne Berry |
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| Quote, Unquote |
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Oh joy. Spring Street
Studio Theatre. As if it wasn't small enough, the horrible flock wallpaper
we used made it seem like the walls were closing in! Despite their promises, the Hull Truck staff hadn’t removed the set from
their production of the week before or set up our lights. But enough about those tossers, what about
the production?
A real period piece and a big improvement on 'Sailor Beware!' both as a
script and a production. Plus (sorry, Dave) we had a director who knew what she
was doing. And performing Bim's novel in Act II - all stiff upper lips, emotional repression,
scandalous liaisons and sock semaphore(!) - was a chance for us to
over-emote shamelessly.
My own full Scottish regalia was camp as hell but at least the sporran gave me
somewhere to put my stethoscope! Natalie had
only a very short scene to change costumes between the ’reality’
and ’fantasy’ scenes, so Elaine and I had to
literally tear the clothes off her to get her
ready in time. (The sacrifices one has to make for
one's art) But Dave Barber gave us a helping hand
by playing the scene very, very slowly. So slowly in fact that it almost died! David
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'Book of the Month' was my
first production with the Chameleons. It was fun to do, as I recall, with
each of us taking a dual role, both as the 'real' people, and as the fantasy
characters in Bim's novel - who she based on her family and friends. I don't have much recollection of the trials and
tribulations of rehearsals, but that doesn't mean there weren't any, just that
I've chosen to bury those memories deep in the archive! I do
remember wearing a silky, flowing negligee that I'd borrowed, and then having to
carry a lighted candle across the stage. Nuff said. I also remember
the now-familiar feeling of being part of a strong team Ailsa
Loved David's Scottish
accent and the scene between 'Mac' and 'Jean'. I now have a
fetish for blue socks Val |
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| Was I In That One? |
Goodbye to
Liz and Jill. Hello to Ailsa, Elaine and Steve -
another one-cap wonder. Down to
the bare bones again, we had advertised for new
members but, as is often the case, all the ones we couldn't give a part to
vanished into the ether. But then one of them was completely mad, wanted
to play all the parts herself and couldn't believe we had to learn all the
lines! |
| The Audience Won’t Notice |
Playing both
'real' and 'fantasy characters was the perfect opportunity for Dave Barber to
get everyone's names mixed up. Which he duly did. ALL THE TIME. The French
windows never shut properly, either, and would slowly swing open during every
scene. |
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