Bargain Funerals

'Bargain Burials' is a zany, slightly risqué, black comedy by the prolific local playwright, Johnny Grim. A Lad in Sane Productions and the Phoenix Theatre Inc are both pleased to present this play’s debut. The season is running at the Phoenix Theatre in Memorial Hall, at the corner of Carrington Street and Rockingham Road, Hamilton Hill nightly at 8.00 pm until 28^th March, with Sunday matinees at 3.00 pm one on the 21^st and the other the 28^th March.

         It is 1976 in the outback town of Wedgiemugurrah. In the local pub Bob, a spiv car salesman (Tony Clarke), is closing a deal on another lousy car.  Into the bar, wander two sad-faced young men (Sean Drill and Anthony Solimo) who have just been sacked from their Council gardening jobs. This is because of the Council’s new private contract agreement with a loathed, local businessman, Jim Corrigan. Corrigan is the type who has stolen a small business from an elderly widow (Barbara Good).

       The lads get a pint from the barman (Peter King) and settle down to decide which direction their lives should take. Perhaps open a business. When dipsomaniac Stu (John Forde) arrives, perhaps he will put in some money to help them.

       Their new business incurs not only the wrath of Corrigan, who sends along his sidekick, Mr Andrews (Kallum Mansfield) to chat to them, but also the local priest (John Davison). Will the business ever take off, could it be a big money maker, or will the lads go back to abject poverty?

Johnny Grim has created a set of believable archetypal Australian mates, all with very distinct loveable characters. He has avoided the caricature approach, with the cast being well chosen and natural in their acting. This is probably John’s best script yet, with a good storyline. He has edited the script well, cutting out any superfluous speeches, which were occasionally a feature of some of his previous shows. The dialogue is ‘family acceptable’ and flows well.

I saw this show on the preview night, so there were a few tech difficulties, slow scene changes and fluffs, but because the audience of 70 (more than half of whom had booked through BOCS) were enjoying themselves so much, were most sympathetic and cheered at the boobs.

Johnny is well known for bravely giving a budding thespian a break. The cast did him proud and I am sure after a couple of shows everything will be spot-on. Special mention to Tony Clarke and John Forde for memorable performances.

After the hilarious 2007 film, ‘Death at a Funeral’, you may think that you have seen every funeral joke in the business, perhaps you have, but here Johnny manages to present a totally new outlook with some very funny lines. The audience all left with smiles on their faces.