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Sunday February 13, 2011 Noel Coward's Fallen Angels: Theatre Sarnia by Brian Hay Approaching this piece purely as a comedy is probably the wrong perspective to view it from. It's not a piece that aims straight at the funny-bone and tries to live there. It's a drama that could (and often does) happen that softens reality by incorporating humour into the mix. It's also (now) a period piece that allows the situation to be viewed through a different moral sensibilities than we have now. It's there that most of the humour lies. Most of the action transpires between two women. 'Julia' is the stern one, prim, proper, somewhat officious and dominant, but ready to release her pollen should the right Bee come along. 'Jane' is less stern (though she tries to offset that), more of a follower and willing to release her pollen a bit more readily. As 'Julia', Elizabeth Murphy presents a perfect portrayal of a cool nature with passion simmering underneath. Patti Grant's presentation of 'Jane's' less rigid character and sense of values serves as a perfect foil for her. The two ladies play off of each other well. Their timing and delivery is generally good and both women do a very good job of staying in character. Much of their activity is offset by the persona of 'Saunders' who serves as a comic foil for both. Georgina Ford does an excellent job in this role. Her timing is excellent and her use of physical affectation is strong. Anyone who's ever watched Una O'Connor in either 'The Bride of Frankenstein' or the Errol Flynn version of 'Robin Hood' will recognize the 'walk' she employs. Ford uses the device extremely well. Her rendition is less exaggerated than O'Connor's was but just as effective. Basically, she's hilarious. The three men in the play have substantially less to do but their work is just as important. John Reid has the least time on stage in the role of 'Maurice Duclos' but in many ways his role is the most demanding of the parts played by the men. He has to maintain a French accent, which he does well. He also has to come across as being far more than he's expected to be, no small task given his limited time in front of the audience. Caleb McKinnon, as 'Willy', does a good job as a foil for the suppressed sides of the characters played by Grant and Murphy. He also offsets the nature of the character of 'Fred' played by Denis Drapeau nicely. As 'Fred', Drapeau is the perfect picture of the husband who's so repressed he could be a product of the Victorian era, a time even stuffier than the period the play is set in. The set, decor, lighting and wardrobe are fabulous. The vision of the interior of a dwelling from the era that set designer Bill Allingham and Designers Len Desjardins and Pam Wong created is great. With the darker hues, and stark, but not overpoweringly bright lighting the visual effect is nothing short of remarkable. Paul Richardson showed great restraint by keeping the lighting set and allowing the drama to keep the piece moving. Lynn Kershaw-Smith and Jean Dowswell created a wardrobe that fit the production beautifully. It has to be said that everything they've done since joining Theatre Sarnia about a year ago has been nothing short of magnificent. The look(s) they help to create often help place the appearance of Theatre Sarnia's productions above many that have far bigger budgets. On stage the action flows smoothly. Director Jim Higgins set a brisk pace for the story and drew good performances from his cast members. There aren't many scene changes but Stage Manager John L'Heureux had plenty to keep him on his toes. The play was written in three acts but this production has only one intermission. It fell to him to make that second division flow like a scene change. Several sound effects were used away from the stage. They had to occur at the right time. Several segments call for cast members to appear to be playing the piano. Dan Sonier took care of the music but the job of keeping those cues for him to play falls to the Stage Manager. There was one small flub but other than that those moments were seamless. They'll undoubtedly be perfect for the remainder of the run. Sonier incidentally composed original music for these bits and did an excellent job of it. He also played some delightful incidental bits before the show and during the intermission. This production is more of a low key piece than either of the previous two. The humour is there but it's very cerebral and relies mainly on the dialogue to be delivered well. Don't expect to be rolling in the aisles. Just sit back and let everything happen. The result is a bit to think about buffered by some good laughs. And incidentally, there are some really outrageous moments. 'Fallen Angels' runs at the Imperial Theatre in Sarnia Ontario from Friday February 11, 2011 through to Saturday February 19, 2011. This article covers the performance that took place on Saturday February 12, 2011. The piece was written with the intent of showing what it is was like to be there. This line acts as a spacer. |
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