Under Development
Last year we confronted a Tempest when Derby Shakespeare also
entered a brave new world state: the verdant grounds of Derby Grammar School where
this year, under a majestic oak, we go a-gambolling in an hilarious farce - thanks
once again to sponsors EDS.
How refreshing to see a big company supporting amateur theatre: as Shakespeare's popularity soars. So does the cost of staging him. This production was worth every expense and effort.
Funnily enough, a tempest is referred to here - one that "threw a whale with so many tons of oil in his belly, ashore at Windsor".
That whale is Falstaff, Shakespeare's most roguish creation, memorably performed by Adrian Robinson as a corpulent, blustering, burping buffoon who affects to seduce two Windsor wives, splendidly played by Lorna Harrington and Joanna Hands, evidently relishing their scheming. You just must see Joanna's Mistress page when drunk - it's a triumph of tipsy.
I've a slight quibble about the play's lack of poetry and some actors tending to occasional overplay, but they're eclipsed by the overwhelming delights.
I'm told the company's new director, David Titley, has been a tough taskmaster, but he has reaped gold - this production has a breezy pace, a pleasing clarity and audibility, and it's been superbly worked for the outdoors: we felt such an intimate part of the frolics, with the actors frequently moving amongst the audience and addressing them.
David has also ensured that his cast extract the maximum humour from the lines with other fine flourishes adding even more.
And what a thrill to see many fine newcomers: Liz Turner's garrulous Mistress Quickly; Jonathan Wolff's blindly jealous Master Ford; and Ben Lawrence's Slender, with his big scarf and little brain, was utterly endearing.
Above all, Richard Hand's Dr Caius is an astounding Shakespearean debut - he affects a comical French accent without ever making him sound like a poor man's Clouseau, and his every outburst had the audience in tatters.
New faces, new director... it's a new lease of life for Derby Shakespeare. An exciting future beckons.
Ashleigh Franklin
Derby Evening Telegraph, 16th July 2003