The Monkey’s Paw and Little Grimley Presents … Strictly Sex Factor on Ice
Twyford Drama
October 5-7
Twyford Drama’s two contrasting one-act plays made a substantial sandwich of entertainment, away from the draw of the Saturday night schedule.
The Monkey’s Paw, adapted by Jonathan Holloway from a story by W.W. Jacobs, opens to a wartime kitchen scene – hearth, table and front door, which were beautifully styled by set designer Gavin Robinson.
The scene was further heightened by the drab costumes and the strong West Country accents from all the cast.
In the play, Peter King as Sergeant-Major Morris, brought a story to share.
The son, Jac Rampton as Herbert, beat his distracted father, played by Richard Rudman, at chess. Mother, Joanne Davis, was busy worrying and caring for others.
This was the start of the characters’ exploration of the magic powers of the monkey’s paw in the play’s title.
This superb cast exercised their wide range of emotions to the credit of the director, Peter King. Heartbreak, fear and mystery were skilfully brought to the stage at Loddon Hall, Twyford from October 5 to 7.
If The Monkey’s Paw wrought strong, relatable feelings from the audience, then Little Grimley Presents … Strictly Sex Factor on Ice by David Tristram got them laughing to a Vicar of Dibley-style post-mortem meeting.
The Little Grimley dramatic group have just finished their worst play of all time: Bernard (Bill Evans) has choice words for hapless Joyce played by Sally Gillard who is the butt of many of the jokes.
Marc Reid as Gordon asks about the play’s budget to fix the heating. Margaret (Beth Reynolds) becomes confused about the finances. And so Little Grimley’s actors rake over the remnants of their play and the acerbic reviews.
It looked like the cast was having as much fun as the audience with the series of disasters, recoveries and misunderstandings, which provided a bright contrast to the previous play, making a substantial sandwich of entertainment.
Louis Larché
