- Stars (out of 5) = 4.
- One-sentence review = “Funny and sad, like that episode of Only Fools & Horses where Rodney got married”.
- Good for people who = like One Foot In The Grave or The Lady In The Van.
- Not good for people who = dislike comedies that occasionally make you cry.
- Would Alan Bennett like it? = Yes
Can a community theatre produce quality shows that are worth your time and money?
From personal experience, tell someone you’re appearing in a community production and they may well laugh (it never works as a chat-up line – trust me). Responses typically include the words “bad acting” and “low budget”.
Does The Studio Theatre Company’s latest production prove these naysayers wrong? Read on to find out…
Myra (Ann Paxton) has been diagnosed with bone cancer, and told she has only months to live. Desperate to take control of the situation, she pulls her family into planning the funeral she wants and preparing them for life after her death – much to the chagrin of her husband Alec (Peter Cook), who would much rather pretend the entire situation isn’t happening.
Things are complicated by the fractious relationship between daughters Harriet (Belinda-Jayne Duffy) and Jenna (Kate Milam), polar opposites who react in very different ways to the news of their mother’s illness.
The acting is of a high quality throughout. Paxton’s Myra is filled with a brittle energy, as she tries to remain positive in a hopeless place. In contrast, Cook’s Alec is a skillful portrayal of a man wishing to honour the memory of his wife, and confused by how seemingly upbeat she is about her fate.
Likewise, Duffy’s Harriet is a considered study of a woman to whom order and routine are the foundations of life – a life in which disorder and unchecked emotions are definitely not OK. Whereas Kate Milam’s Jenna is a powerful depiction of a woman fully in touch with her emotions, despite the impact this can have on her relationship with others.
The set design does perhaps betray the play’s community theatre roots – this isn’t a lavish production – but in my opinion, this creates a deliberately claustrophobic atmosphere that shows how trapped the family are by this terrible illness. It also helps to focus your attention on the acting, and on the comedy.
For – much like many great dramas – this is a piece in which comedy and tragedy walk hand in hand, the comedy opening you up so that you feel the tragedy even more. It also feels very real. “Dad, mum’s dying here and you’re reading the paper!” Harriet exclaims at one point – to which her father merely replies “Watched pot never boils, love”. Moments like this really capture the dark comedy that can often accompany the reality of living with a harrowing illness, and the way that we often need laughter to help us cope with bleak conditions.
This dichotomy really pays off in several of the play’s more emotional moments. I won’t spoil them for you, but I will say this.
Theatre, when it’s done well, is full of moments that stop your breath and make time stand still. Moments that are the visual equivalent of those points in Marillion songs where Steve Hogarth’s voice just soars, and the hairs stand up on your arms.
This production is full of such moments – and they really make the case for why theatre is still such an important medium, despite diminishing audience numbers and the rise of Netflix. You just don’t get the full experience unless you’re watching actors live, in the flesh, in front of you.
Such experiences are a credit to the solid direction of Adrian Tang who leads the production – in a collaboration between his company “Exit, Pursued By Panda” (the subject of a recent interview) and The Studio Theatre Company.
Kudos are therefore due to both Tang and the venue’s Creative Director Luke Burton for adding this play to the venue’s 2018 programme. Community Theatre doesn’t have to mean low budgets – in this instance, it can mean presenting stories about issues that many of us in the community have encountered and struggled to deal with in isolation.
With tickets priced at a reasonable £14 (roughly comparable to an evening at the cinema and considerably cheaper than a trip to the West End) I would say this is money well-spent.
“Colder Than Here” will be performed from the 3rd – 6th October. Tickets are available at: https://www.southhillpark.org.uk/events/colder-than-here/.
