The Ladykillers
Tour - The Mayflower Theatre, Southampton
I wished that I had seen the original production after hearing some great reviews. I was therefore pleased to discover that it was going on tour and coming to the Mayflower Theatre. I could not wait to see it and for the most part I was not dissapointed.
Mrs Louisa Wilberforce (Michele Doctrice) lives in a lopsided house next to a railway. Professor Marcus (Paul Brown) arrives to rent a room in her house together with a group of musicians. It is revealed however that the Professor and the group are a bunch of criminals. They use Mrs Wilberforce's house as a hideout and plan a heist. However complications arise after the heist when Mrs Wilberforce discovers the stolen money.
It was quite fascinating to watch Mrs Wilberforce being taken in by this gang as they plan their heist whilst making every effort to cover it up each time the little old lady comes into the room. The heist takes place by the end of the first act, after which the play becomes darker as the gang tries to kill of Mrs Wilberforce whilst killing each other in the process. By the end however it did feel as though the tension had reached it's peak too early. Perhaps the The Liverpool Playhouse and Gielgud Theatre, where the original production was staged, are smaller venues because the action did seemed dwarfed by the Mayflower Theatre, even though I was not sitting far away from the stage. By the end all the characters were doing was to walk around and shout threats into the dark. The comedy too was great, though some of the slapstick were overused.
However, the acting is worth seeing for its own sake. Michele Dotrice played an upstanding Mrs Wilberforce and conveyed the lady's despair and weariness as the tension mounts. Also playing a leading role was Paul Brown, as the eccentric but menacing Professor. The rest of the cast brought a range of characters to the production. Chris McCalphy was the dumb muscle-man, One-Round. William Troughton was the handsome yet sleazy Harry Robinson. Shaun Williamson played the brooding and threatening Louis Harvey. Clive Mantle meanwhile was a rather neurotic Major Courtney and there was a hilarious moment when he fantasises dancing with a woman in the form of one of Mrs Wilberforce's dresses.
The set which consisted of the interior of Mrs Wilberforce's house had a character all of its own,. The curtain showed the exterior of the house in what reminded me of a type of film title card. It was also cleverly used to show the heist. Parts of the main set could also move to reveal a rooftop scene. Situated next to a railway line, there is a sense of precariousness about the house. The whole set is lopsided and occasionally a passing train would send everything rattling and moving all over the place. However I was expecting this effect to increase as the tension built, but it did not happen. The structure of the house also reminds one of a birdcage, giving a sense of entrapment. Yet within a large theatre the actors did not project their voices well during the play, which added to the diminished action at the climax.
This was for the most part a funny and tense production. The cast was top-notch and there were a lot of memorable moments. This is worth seeing at a low Top Price.
Mrs Louisa Wilberforce (Michele Doctrice) lives in a lopsided house next to a railway. Professor Marcus (Paul Brown) arrives to rent a room in her house together with a group of musicians. It is revealed however that the Professor and the group are a bunch of criminals. They use Mrs Wilberforce's house as a hideout and plan a heist. However complications arise after the heist when Mrs Wilberforce discovers the stolen money.
It was quite fascinating to watch Mrs Wilberforce being taken in by this gang as they plan their heist whilst making every effort to cover it up each time the little old lady comes into the room. The heist takes place by the end of the first act, after which the play becomes darker as the gang tries to kill of Mrs Wilberforce whilst killing each other in the process. By the end however it did feel as though the tension had reached it's peak too early. Perhaps the The Liverpool Playhouse and Gielgud Theatre, where the original production was staged, are smaller venues because the action did seemed dwarfed by the Mayflower Theatre, even though I was not sitting far away from the stage. By the end all the characters were doing was to walk around and shout threats into the dark. The comedy too was great, though some of the slapstick were overused.
However, the acting is worth seeing for its own sake. Michele Dotrice played an upstanding Mrs Wilberforce and conveyed the lady's despair and weariness as the tension mounts. Also playing a leading role was Paul Brown, as the eccentric but menacing Professor. The rest of the cast brought a range of characters to the production. Chris McCalphy was the dumb muscle-man, One-Round. William Troughton was the handsome yet sleazy Harry Robinson. Shaun Williamson played the brooding and threatening Louis Harvey. Clive Mantle meanwhile was a rather neurotic Major Courtney and there was a hilarious moment when he fantasises dancing with a woman in the form of one of Mrs Wilberforce's dresses.
The set which consisted of the interior of Mrs Wilberforce's house had a character all of its own,. The curtain showed the exterior of the house in what reminded me of a type of film title card. It was also cleverly used to show the heist. Parts of the main set could also move to reveal a rooftop scene. Situated next to a railway line, there is a sense of precariousness about the house. The whole set is lopsided and occasionally a passing train would send everything rattling and moving all over the place. However I was expecting this effect to increase as the tension built, but it did not happen. The structure of the house also reminds one of a birdcage, giving a sense of entrapment. Yet within a large theatre the actors did not project their voices well during the play, which added to the diminished action at the climax.
This was for the most part a funny and tense production. The cast was top-notch and there were a lot of memorable moments. This is worth seeing at a low Top Price.
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