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Arsenic And Old Lace
Playwright - Joseph Kesselring
Director - Richard Baron
Set Designer - Trevor Coe
Costume Designer - Ken Harrison
Lighting Designer - Mark Pritchard
Company - Pitlochry Festival Theatre Company 2002
Venue - Pitlochry Festival Theatre
www.pitlochry.org.uk
01796 484626
By the banks of the River Tummel, their theatre has most beautiful setting.
Pitlochry is about 2hrs easy drive from Edinburgh + has lots of hotels
and B+Bs. When theatre is open Restaurant booking advised 01796 484626
for dinner also Bar and Coffee Bar.
EdinburghGuide Pitlochry
Festival Theatre Page with last season's reviews and info
Dates - see end of review
Run Time 2hrs 35 mins including two 20 minute intervals
Reviewer - Thelma Good
Host of dotty characters
Arsenic and Old Lace - Pitlochry Festival Theatre Production
Abby, Alice Fraser, Mortimer, Guy Fearon, and Martha,
Edith MacArthur
© Keith Brame 2002
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In a Gothic set full of dark woodwork for things to come out of, heavily
patterned wallpaper and guttering candles, Richard Baron brings us the
latest of his productions of stage plays which first really made their
names on the silver screen. This one has superbly dotty characters and
benefits from a playing style which owes not a little to the Hammer Horror
genre and Betty Boop.
Deliciously whacky are Alice Fraser and Edith MacArthur's
Abby and Martha Brewster, maiden aunts who have a special way of making
sure their visitors sometimes stay. Their nephew Teddy lives with them,
happy in his own delusions, digging away in the cellar and living the
life of Roosevelt. Martyn James is president of his role as Teddy
charging up the stairs or worrying over the latest yellow fever victim
on the Panama Canal. His much younger brother Mortimer is a reluctant
drama critic, but he isn't reluctant about the young lady Elaine, until
he finds something to worry about in his aunts' window seat. Getting many
of the best laughs, Guy Fearton as Mortimer and Kitty Lucas
as Elaine give sparkling fun performances - Fearon recalling the
charisma of Cary Grant who starred as Mortimer in the film and Lucas,
Betty Boop.
As the blacksheep Brewster brother Jonathan and his do-you-a-new face
Dr Einstein are Jimmy Chisholm and Dougal Lee. These are
the trickiest roles with Chisholm playing Peter Lorre's Einstein
to Lee's Boris Karloff's creepy Jonathan. Karloff originated the
role, but despite many lines needing his monstrous look, he didn't get
to be in the screen version where Raymond Massey got made up for the Karloff
role while Lorre came in as Dr Einstein. The smoke which accompanies Joseph's
entrances into the Brewster mansion over eggs this production's pudding
but Lee and Chisholm are close to getting their double act
pitched just right. The production has lots of fun sight gags, sterling
work from John Buick, Richard Keynes and Matt Blair as the
local NY cops, one of whom is eager to get his plays staged and is delighted
to meet Mortimer. Look out for Moray Treadwell displaying his ability
to create memorable, disparate characters.
With lots of jokes about theatre, how to cope with odd relatives and lonely
people, Joseph Kesselring's play was substantially reworked before production
by The Sound Of Music team Lindsay and Crouse. It became a Broadway and
West End Hit. Pitlochry's production lets us appreciate and laugh at the
fine job they did for Kesselring. Finally, read the programme before the
performance, it will add considerably to your enjoyment of the theatre
jokes.
© Thelma Good 24 May 2002
Arsenic And Old Lace
Performance Dates
16th May (2pm), 16th May (8pm), 18th May (8pm), 24th May (8pm),
1st June (2pm), 5th June (8pm), 8th June (2pm), 10th June (8pm),
14th June (8pm), 18th June (8pm), 19th June (2pm), 22nd June (8pm), 26th
June (8pm), 29th June (2pm),
2nd July (8pm), 3rd July (2pm), 5th July (8pm), 13th July (8pm),
19th July (8pm), 20th July (2pm), 25th July (8pm),
2nd August (8pm), 7th August (8pm), 13th August (8pm), 14th August
(2pm), 19th August (8pm), 24th August (8pm), 29th August (8pm),
2nd September (8pm), 7th September (2pm), 14th September (8pm),
17th September (8pm), 18th September (2pm), 25th September (8pm), 28th
September (2pm),
4th October (8pm), 8th October (8pm), 9th October (2pm), 14th October
(8pm), 19th October (8pm).
Run of Arsenic And Old Lace Ends
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