Review Going Postal - Arena Arts and Entertainment INC

Being a big fan of Terry Pratchett I was very excited to hear that Arena were performing "Going Postal" at Old Mill. I went along to the second performance on Friday the 22nd of Feb. The strange folk selling programs and the fabulous Igor telling us to "turn off our little phones" set the scene for a fun night. The play opened with an introduction to Discworld that included a warning about overacting....they weren't kidding! Some of the cast overacted very well it suited the humour of the play and their characters........others, really bought down the caliber of the show. Being a Pratchett play I was expecting big laughs but unfortunately the audience I was sitting in was fairly silent. Many very funny lines were lost by actors speaking much too quickly or swallowing some of their words but please don't think all I'm going to do is complain. There were some very fine performances. Theo Messenger as the hero of the Post Office "Moist Von Lipwig" was superb! He played his part very well and gave a great lift to the whole production. Well done! Paris Romanis as the Golem "Mr Pump" was an audience favourite, his big brown costume and stilted voice couldn't hide the character's emotional growth and affection for Moist and the Post Office. Paris did a wonderful job of making the big lump of clay a really loveable fellow. Michael Lamont as "Groat" also put on a good performance as did Maria Passalacqua as the headstrong matriarch of the Post Office "Miss Macclariat". There were also some wonderful performances in the minor roles particularly Jeremy Malcolm as the Pin customer, Adam Allis as Horsefry in his scene with Gilt, Cally Zanik as the Deaconess, Les Lee as Mr Pony and Carina Butcher and Adam Allis again as Sane Alex and Mad Al. Even with these wonderful performances the play seemed a little less than it could have been. As mentioned earlier there was some painful over acting and there were a few actors who needed to work on their vocal technique to ensure all of their lines were heard. Costuming was on the whole very good. I LOVED Moist's hat and gold suit. Mad Al and Sane Alex looked fantastic and Reacher Gilt's purple was great..... but Adora needs stockings, nice boots and perfect top though. There were some technical difficulties in the performance I saw. The music and sound effects while very well chosen and positioned at times were in places a bit loud, especially over dialogue. (Reacher Gilts' party for example) The lighting looked great, there were a few sloppy cues but it's early, I'm sure they'll tighten up. One of the biggest disappointments of the night was "The voice of Death", we couldn't understand a word but I'm sure that'll be fixed up for the next show. All in all it was a pleasant night out and Terry Pratchett fans should get a kick out of it. It's not perfect but it's fun!

A good review from Mildred. A few computer problems seem to have cost me the chance to be first review but I guess that's the way the cookie crumbles. Not sure I'd agree on all points but I suppose that's the fun of live theatre, every performance is different. Below is my review, unfortunately written before I saw Mildred's so it doesn't really take the form of a reply. I hope it will be constructive and enlightening... But it's late so I can't be sure. ------------------------------------------------------------- Well. Here we are. Before reading below, you should keep in mind that I may give away some elements of the play. I don't intend to and will try to avoid doing so, but to discuss it properly it may be necessary. You should also keep in mind I'm a fairly critical bastard. With those two warnings please read on. Doing a Pratchett is always a tricky thing. I'm yet to be involved in one but I've heard the stories, seen the productions. The things that make Pratchett's good to read are the same things that can make them such a horror to put on. Terry Pratchett paints with a very large imaginary brush, so bringing his world to life faithfully is a very tricky thing to do. Large casts. Elaborate stories often told as much in the protagonists head as in conversations. Magic. I went in to Going Postal (On a free ticket courtesy of a competition run on these very forums) expecting an ordeal. I was happily relieved to find that this is not what I got. Costuming. It ranged from acceptable to simply beautiful. Make up was similarly well done though the vampire might of had theirs layered in a bit thick. Lighting was well done. A slight flicker to the flames. Promptly up and down. Well defined edges allowing for the separation of the two levels of the stage. Well done to whoever did the rigging, multiple well placed spotlights must of been a chore. Sound. Now, I have a slight problem here but I'll get to that. The actual operation of the sound was lovely, can't think of any delays. Your sound and lighting operators must of both been wired on red bull to pay such close attention through nearly 2 and a half hours of acting. Well done. I like scene change music, but I found the selection of music a bit... Off? Sorry, I can't really think of a more constructive way of putting it. It just didn't seem quite appropriate though I can't think of what would be. But, given how smoothly the scene changes went this wasn't a real problem. Scene changes were quite smooth. A little bit odd perhaps to see actors in full costuming shifting tables around but really a good leveraging of the man power a large cast provides to get the scene changes done. I can't recall any delayed entrances so I'd suspect that your Stage Manager deserves a good pat on the back. It might pay to do some projection exercises with the cast. Most were fine but a few could be a little soft. With a cast this size you're bound to get a mixture of experience levels which can make the less experienced cast members a little more obvious. I don't recall missing any lines, just perhaps something to watch if only to try and even it up a little. I also found the over acting to be a little uneven... Some people were playing their characters quite pantomime while others were a bit more straight laced. Igor was maybe a little too big for my liking on one or two lines, but given the excellent performance and the very Igor voice I didn't really mind that much. Nice hump and limp. Grote and Stanley were both charming. Not as I imagined them when I read the book a few months ago but very enjoyable to watch. Well done to Mem on the physicality's of the role, I particularly enjoyed the wrestling with the horse. The muscle man pose was good for a chuckle. Now. To the Director, Simon. I think you over played the 4th wall breaches a bit much. One or two were quite enjoyable, the "It looked better written down" line springs to mind. Some of the others, such as the telling off of the sound man, didn't hit the right note with me. Also, I get what you were trying to do with the "rhubar rhubarb rhubarb" and "whisper whisper whisper" but personally I don't think they worked. Oh, though rude of me to criticise without mention firstly how well directed the production is over all. Sight lines were good. Very few instances of tin soldiers in a line. Clever use of the space. I found the hanging scene to be tremendously effective. Loved the executioner by the way, exactly the right kind of off beat character for the role. The Soap Box being bounced around was also well handled by actors and quite effective and humorous. Now, keeping in mind it was the opening night, I did feel that act one ran smoother than act two. The scene were Moist negotiates with the mail coach"men" sticks out as still a bit rough. Got the impression a line or two became lost though I'm sure that will smooth out. Well done to the gentleman playing Moist Von Lipwig. Quick on his feet with an ad-lib here or there to help cover a run away coin or the like. Good facial expressions. Good voice. Similarly to Miss Dearheart. Very much the no-nonsense ice queen. The relationship between her and Moist felt like it could maybe use a little more development but otherwise good. Oh, and I must make a mention of Mr Pump. My friend pointed out what a great commitment to being in character Mr Pump made and I have to agree. I remember at one point while the stage was blacked out, Mr Pump remained in character and as a Golem moved an offending prop to a more appropriate location. Very well done. Wasn't sure how you would costume a Golem, but the suits used are quite effective. As a sudden thought, maybe try and match the face make up to the suit? Also, if you could strap some lumps of wood to Mr Pump's feet to give him a bit of extra height that would be perfect but that's just me being fussy. Oh, while I'm being fussy. The Street lamp. Bit bright. Could you maybe put some grease paper in the frame? I found myself with little coloured spots from the light bulb. Ninja Turtle was great. I really quite enjoyed the little Star Trek references and music, they won over my inner nerd. But I found the rather trademark sound of the Tardis to be inappropriately placed. I think you may have also played the three people in a line staring out to the audience card once too many. The first two or three times it was like a little recurring joke. The last time near the end it felt a little like flogging a dead horse. I also didn't personally enjoy the misdirection gag, where the cast point or look one way and someone entered from another. Did I mention I'm a bastard? The Death Puppet is just fantastic. Very very very cool. The flow was over all very good. The narration at the start was one of only about three exceptions I can think of. It's a good scene, not sure if it's an addition or part of the original script, but handy to try and bring people up to speed. Just found that the bit with the sun and the moon and the stumbling elephant was a bit awkward. The coachmen scene I already mentioned. The other two I can think of are more moments than scenes. The confusion with Mr Pony on the steps when he's up against the Grand Trunk crew and the hug/shake at the end. Both could be funny but maybe just a bit snappier? Mr Slant. I can forgive characters being different to I imagined as long as they're still essentially the same character. I'm sorry, but Mr Slant did not feel at all like a dusty old zombie lawyer. No make up. His clothing was quite sharp as I recall. No make up, made all the more obvious by the heavily made up vampire 2 meters away from him. Sorry. The gentleman who played him was fine as the printer and even attempted an accent near the end, but I just felt he didn't come close to the character of Mr Slant. And as lovely as Ms Greenyham and her vampire friend were, I did find their appearance in the burnt out post office and subsequent abrupt leaving a little odd. Oh! Speaking of Greenyham, accents! Well done to everyone. One or two drifted a little but Greenyham, Gilt near the end and Miss Macclariat were all lovely. Sorry if I've failed to mention you, just so much to try and recall. Miss Macclariat, I found you a little breathy on one or two lines which was a shame because on most of them you nailed it. Excellent characterisation, I would not wish to mess with your quills! Mr Gilt and Lord Vetinari both looked very sinister. Bald headed bad guys. Very scary. That seems to be about it (Yes, I actually wrote notes. Bastard, remember?). I suspect that a non-Pratchett fan or possibly even a fan who has not read Going Postal might find one or two spots a little fuzzy, but this is to be expected when you try to squeeze the entirety of a novel into a mere 2 hours and 15 minutes. I found the book adapted quite well, thanks in no small parts to the efforts of the cast and the crew. I hope my overly critical review has not disheartened anyone involved or any potential audience. I found it a very enjoyable way to spend an evening and am sure you won't regret the price of admission. Well done to all involved. I wish you a good season. Break some legs.

What a terrific show...great fun, great costumes and good performances. Just to build on the comments above, given the differing levels of experience, some of the casting choices were a bit interesting. But it is amateur theatre and meant to be fun, which it was!