Short play season big on value at Melville Theatre
Fri, 3 Sept 2010, 05:59 pmmicahelfarrell1 post in thread
Short play season big on value at Melville Theatre
Fri, 3 Sept 2010, 05:59 pmTHEY say variety is the spice of life – and Melville Theatre has plenty on offer this September, ready to pepper the different tastes of its audiences.
Two short plays and two monologues make up the ingredients for a night out that will please most palates.
Written by John Grimshaw and directed by Felicity May, Checkout is set in a small store with a new manager who has big plans for the future.
“But a long-term customer can see the detrimental effect the changes will have on staff,” Felicity said.
“It’s a locally-written WA play that addresses many issues highlighting the impact current technology and progress are having on service in our small stores.
“Even though I was asked to fill-in as director, I’m enjoying directing a play that has these issues at its heart.”
With Checkout, May believes her biggest challenge is helping her actors bring a store to life with a minimal set and imaginary customers.
“Some of the characters in the play are made to be disliked and, while you really want to love all the roles, that can be hard with slimy characters,” she said.
Also on the menu is The Game, directed by Nicquelle May and Briana Dunn, and originally written by Louise Bryant in 1916 to highlight how no one has any control when it comes to life and death.
“It’s completely up to chance or a role of the dice,” Nicquelle said. “With our production, we have created a more modern setting but kept up the ideals and principles the playwright originally had in mind.
“I don’t believe it’s been performed in Perth for a long time, if at all, and we’re excited to bring something new – although quite old – to the table.
“I identified with the basis of the play, along with the characters, and truly believed that while the play is quite old, I could bring it into a modern setting and pour a lot of myself into it.”
Briana said she been interested in directing for a while and leapt at the opportunity to be involved when Nicquelle told her about the production.
“Once I read the script, I became really excited because it has a lot of potential to be brilliant,” she said.
“The language of the play has been a challenge because we wanted to make it more accessible for audiences by putting it in a modern setting, which has meant having to alter the dialogue.”
Nicquelle is mainly concerned with developing fully-rounded characters for her cast.
“The Game is not very long and the character descriptions are brief, so we have spent a lot of time with the cast individually to achieve this,” she said.
Joining the two plays are two monologues, Gavin Regrets and Valerie Gets Hitched, written and directed by Therese Edmonds.
In Gavin Regrets, the piece explores how ridiculous situations can arise from a series of perfectly logical decisions.
“In Gavin’s case, it’s getting arrested while trying to rescue an unconscious midget from a kiddie-bike trailer, stuck in the mud in Guildford – in the nude,” Edmonds said.
Edmonds says she wrote Valerie Gets Hitched because she is fascinated by people who reveal their inner selves without realising it.
“We don’t always communicate what we intend to,” she said. “Sometimes that’s a good thing; sometimes not so great but, in Valerie’s case, it’s hilarious!"
Checkout, The Game, Gavin Regrets and Valerie Gets Hitched play at 8pm September 10, 11, 16, 17 and 18 with a 2pm matinee on September 12. Tickets are $17, $15 concession – book on 9330 4565 or email melville.theatre.company@gmail.com.
Melville Theatre is on the corner of Stock Road and Canning Highway, Palmyra. More information is available www.meltheco.org.au.
micahelfarrellFri, 3 Sept 2010, 05:59 pm
THEY say variety is the spice of life – and Melville Theatre has plenty on offer this September, ready to pepper the different tastes of its audiences.
Two short plays and two monologues make up the ingredients for a night out that will please most palates.
Written by John Grimshaw and directed by Felicity May, Checkout is set in a small store with a new manager who has big plans for the future.
“But a long-term customer can see the detrimental effect the changes will have on staff,” Felicity said.
“It’s a locally-written WA play that addresses many issues highlighting the impact current technology and progress are having on service in our small stores.
“Even though I was asked to fill-in as director, I’m enjoying directing a play that has these issues at its heart.”
With Checkout, May believes her biggest challenge is helping her actors bring a store to life with a minimal set and imaginary customers.
“Some of the characters in the play are made to be disliked and, while you really want to love all the roles, that can be hard with slimy characters,” she said.
Also on the menu is The Game, directed by Nicquelle May and Briana Dunn, and originally written by Louise Bryant in 1916 to highlight how no one has any control when it comes to life and death.
“It’s completely up to chance or a role of the dice,” Nicquelle said. “With our production, we have created a more modern setting but kept up the ideals and principles the playwright originally had in mind.
“I don’t believe it’s been performed in Perth for a long time, if at all, and we’re excited to bring something new – although quite old – to the table.
“I identified with the basis of the play, along with the characters, and truly believed that while the play is quite old, I could bring it into a modern setting and pour a lot of myself into it.”
Briana said she been interested in directing for a while and leapt at the opportunity to be involved when Nicquelle told her about the production.
“Once I read the script, I became really excited because it has a lot of potential to be brilliant,” she said.
“The language of the play has been a challenge because we wanted to make it more accessible for audiences by putting it in a modern setting, which has meant having to alter the dialogue.”
Nicquelle is mainly concerned with developing fully-rounded characters for her cast.
“The Game is not very long and the character descriptions are brief, so we have spent a lot of time with the cast individually to achieve this,” she said.
Joining the two plays are two monologues, Gavin Regrets and Valerie Gets Hitched, written and directed by Therese Edmonds.
In Gavin Regrets, the piece explores how ridiculous situations can arise from a series of perfectly logical decisions.
“In Gavin’s case, it’s getting arrested while trying to rescue an unconscious midget from a kiddie-bike trailer, stuck in the mud in Guildford – in the nude,” Edmonds said.
Edmonds says she wrote Valerie Gets Hitched because she is fascinated by people who reveal their inner selves without realising it.
“We don’t always communicate what we intend to,” she said. “Sometimes that’s a good thing; sometimes not so great but, in Valerie’s case, it’s hilarious!"
Checkout, The Game, Gavin Regrets and Valerie Gets Hitched play at 8pm September 10, 11, 16, 17 and 18 with a 2pm matinee on September 12. Tickets are $17, $15 concession – book on 9330 4565 or email melville.theatre.company@gmail.com.
Melville Theatre is on the corner of Stock Road and Canning Highway, Palmyra. More information is available www.meltheco.org.au.