Reviews

     A riotously funny satirical farce in the tradition of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead and Shakespeare in Love, from the author of The Libertine.

    Elizabeth I is tottering at death's door. Conspirators are everywhere. Lucius Bodkin, an Elizabethan stand-up comedian, becomes unwittingly involved in the political skullduggery and jiggery-pokery surrounding the ailing queen.

    The Clink could pass itself off as a long-lost Elizabethan comedy. In fact it is a brilliant political satire offering many sharp parallels with our own times, when art must be sponsored, but to be sponsored it must be 'safe'.

Report by:   Peter Parlour on Saturday 11 November 2017 (edited for clarity)
Venue:  Georgian Theatre Royal, Richmond
Director:  Mike Walker

   This was a play which is not often performed and RADS were privileged to present the Northern Amateur Premiere. This might be due to the technical challenges the production undoubtedly brings with nineteen scene changes, some quite short, some long, with some very long pieces of monologue. Despite it having music within the plot none was supplied and the composer, when contacted, could not recollect the score so it was down to director Mike Walker to improvise which he did with panache.

   This Elizabethan play was centred around a fool being the victim of political skulduggery - ‘Lucius Bodkin’ was excellently played by Jordan Leighton. The fool’s brother ‘Thomas Bodkin’ (also a fool) was played by Martin Ash who also played Davenport (a Catholic Nobleman) very well indeed. ‘Warburton’ (a privy councillor), was well played by Warnock Kerr who had at one stage an extremely long piece of dialogue – well done.

   ‘Beatrice’ the Monarch's Lady in Waiting was very well played by Amanda White. The Monarch looked every inch a queen, regally played by Lynne Kerr. Gary Winn took three parts including a Ghost of Hieronymus Bodkin, John Frobisher (a privy councillor) and The Captain (a connoisseur of the Duel) really very well indeed.

   Gregan Davis also took several very small roles. There was very little scenery and the use of curtains helped to divide the small scenes and keep the action flowing. The scenery that was on view was by Gary Winn – well done.

   Mike Walker did a first-class job in performing a play with very little to work on and making it a very interesting evening’s entertainment.

Report by:   Christina McIntyre on Friday 10 November 2017
Venue:  Georgian Theatre Royal, Richmond
Director:  Mike Walker

   Selecting a play with long speeches, 19 scene changes and a convoluted plot is no mean feat for an amateur company.

Set in 1603, this play explores the political unrest as Elizabeth I's lengthy reign is ending. Director Mike Walker certainly had his work cut out, and successfully negotiated some of the key challenges.

Slick scene changes were effected by using both sides of the stage, and deploying the curtains to focus the attention to the other side. Features such as the frozen River Thames, the royal throne and the sorcerer's lab worked well, and the gravestone in front of a trapdoor from which the ghost of Hieronymous Bodkin emerged was a neat touch.

The projected backdrop featuring Tudor facades, bleak dungeons and large stone fireplaces would have been perfect had they not occasionally billowed slightly, warping the images.

Across the board, the Elizabethan costumes were authentic and stylish, though the Dutch trade delegation did unfortunately resemble a darkly attired Ku Klux Klan.

There were noble performances, notably from Lynne Kerr as Queen Elizabeth I, Warnock Kerr as Warburton, the privy councillor, and Gregan Davis whose primary role was as the sorcerer / alchemist, John Butler. Alice Johnson gave some impassioned speeches as Zanda, the slave with ambition, and Jordan Leighton played Lucius Bodkin, the fool at the heart of the story. He perfectly portrayed the comic who becomes embroiled in the political machinations, apart from when required to sing.

This Stephen Jeffreys play had a lot of areas of merit but as a whole its length and complexity was telling. When an audience member earnestly asked her neighbour "Do you have a clue what's going on?", I empathised.