What becomes of a good night out...

I had the pleasure of attending 'What Becomes of the Broken Hearted' last night. The show is a collection of 3 one act plays, written by Johnny Grimm, and produced by A Lad in Sane, in conjunction with Pheonix Theatre. I was so impressed by the quality of the performances, that by the end of first play I had decided I wanted to tell everyone I knew how brilliant they were. And though I had never before in my life written a review, by the second act I was already mentally constructing one. My night started when I arrived at the newly refurbished Pheonix Theatre, it's looking particularly good having now installed raked seating, as well as some comfortable chairs in the lobby. I feel that these improvements really lift the atmosphere of the venue;it's amazing how raked seating turns a hall into a proper theatre. I'd also like to say that the kind folk of Pheonix Theatre are some of the most friendly front of house staff I've ever met. Very personal, and I've never been there without one of them buying me a drink...although I was in the last 'A Lad in Sane' production there, so perhaps you might not be so lucky with the free drinks. Now onto the show. First was 'The Last Waltz' directed by Jane Sherwood, starring Marcelle Weber, and Maty Young. The script itself was really engaging and far exceeded my expectations having never seen a Johnny Grimm short play. (No offence to Bannockburn intended Mr Grimm). The play struck an amazing balance between laugh out loud humour and real drama, as well as characters the audience genuinely cared for. I'd like to make special mention of Matt Young who was very impressive, in his portrayal of the emotional young husband. Marcelle also surprised me as his performance was so removed from the last thing I saw him in, he didn't seem like the same person. Jane really did a spectacular job. The sound and lighting for this show, provided by Hwyel Williams and Rob Harwood irrespectively, was very impressive, and almost magically created the tricky effect of a moving car. Well done all. White Roses, starring Johnny Grimm himself, as well as Peter King, was also directed by John, 'I got into this like a dog get's into licking his balls'. (An actor pulling out a week before the show). Johnny Grimm, Writer, Director, Actor, what can't he do? I was particularly interested in coming to see the show as I had heard rumours that he used be quite the board treader back in the day. And he carried the sulky dejected Rob with aplomb. Though I do have to make special mention of Peter King, and his rediculous portrayal of an Aussie bloke. It was hilarious. I'm really surprised right now to read in the program that this is Peter's acting debut. His strength on stage must be a credit to himself and Johnny's direction. Not realising that this play was in two parts, when we went to interval half way through it, I was quite upset when it hadn't ended, and very excited to see the set hadn't changed when we came back. The one reccomendation I would make for this play is that due to the great humour, several lines were lost under the audience uproarious laughter. Remember to slow down boys and wait for the laughs to finish, because we don't want to miss any gags. The third and final play of the evening, 'Tissues and Whine' directed by Peter Nettleton, is probably the play I related to the least. But this was largely because it had an all female cast, and I am not a female. There were good performances by all, but Trish Farrel really shone. And I still found the subject matter engaging, and was compelled to come home and tell my wife I loved her very much. As she is a female. The set for this show was smart and simple, and costumes really suited the cast, and the girls looked great. The only reccomendation I make for this play, is that sometimes it was difficult to see the actors expressions, as they were often looking directly at other peformers rather than out to the audience. If they could turn there heads just a bit, it would be easier to connect emotionally. All in all, a great night out. Quality performances, intelligent scripts, diverse subject matter and lots and lots and lots of laughs. Considering I'm a young bloke I felt that this production was very suitable for oldies and youngies alike, and anyone who can't decide which they are should deffinitely come along. Although be aware that there is some swearing and adult themes, as you'd expect with Johnny Grimm.