Author: Mo

“MURDER at Dress Rehearsal” by Paul Mathews plus 5 sketches and a fun quiz

Springtime, and time for another murder mystery! But this dramatic offering from Paul Mathews. A great comedy evening for cast and audience alike, our Spring 2023 production, began with 5 sketches, all of which explored the ups and downs of planning and preparing for an am-dram show… The sketches were followed by Part 1 of our Murder Mystery comedy play “Murder at Dress Rehearsal” by Paul Mathews – the main element of the dramatic evening. This is a one act play – about a play-within-a-play, set in a village hall (surprise!). The comedy plays on the known eccentricities of local theatre. Real life drama causes tension on and offstage at the dress rehearsal for ‘Ich Liebe Dich’, a wartime play. But worse is to come when someone switches the blank ammunition, with murderous consequences!

MURDER in Little Grimley by David Tristram and Sketches from “Laughter Lines” by Frank Gibbons plus a fun quiz

After the success of “Lockdown” by D. Tristram, he promptly wrote another episode in the “Little Grimley” saga – the sixth in the hugely popular series – entitled: “MURDER! in Little Grimley”. As Tristram afficianados we siezed the chance to perform the play, which follows the antics of a hapless Amateur Dramatic Society desperate for audiences. We love this series because it is really rewarding to perform, with great characters and very funny dialogue. The plots reflect familiar issues as they are set in a village very like Berrow, and so many situations echo the real problems of being in a small amateur drama group – although we have had no murders at Stage 2… so far! In addition to the main play we performed some amusing sketches and our usual fun quiz to make the evening complete.

About the Play:
In the latest Grimley scenario… Anxious to cash in on the public’s appetite for detective dramas, the Chairman Gordon writes a whodunit… but in a bizarre twist he then finds himself embroiled in a real-life murder mystery that threatens to put him behind bars. The quarrelsome quartet have been in some sticky situations over the years. But can they possibly get away with murder?

Lockdown in Little Grimley by David Tristram and a fun quiz

Back to the wonderful David Tristram’s very funny “Little Grimley” series for a play based on the lockdown issues we all endured…. and in the interval, a quiz featuring loo rolls as part of the “Lockdown Survival Kit” prize !

About the Play:
“Lockdown in Little Grimley” by David Tristram successfully highlights some of the more hilarious aspects of lockdown mentality. After all the pain and upset we all endured during the pandemic, this play may just be the perfect antidote. Sometimes its good to laugh at your fears.
‘Lockdown’ is set in a Village Hall much like our own Berrow, and the action begins just as government restrictions are starting to ease. Gordon has had a “great” idea for a fantastic comeback production which will re-launch the Little Grimley Amateur Dramatic Society whilst simultaneously benefitting a very deserving charity….
We did ask our fantastic audiences to bear with us during the presentation of “Lockdown” as there are a very few “naughty” words used by the playwright to add emphasis at particular moments, and we felt we should honour his intention, so “language” was used!

Comedy Triple Bill – “A Cut in the Rates” by Alan Ayckbourn, / Twitch in Time by Horry Parsons / Gentlemen Callers by Pam Mackenzie

Our plucky cast had never consumed as much battenburg in their entire lives as they did rehearsing and performing this production….!

About the plays:

A CUT IN THE RATES:
When Miss Pickhart visits the illusionist Ratchet on official Town Hall business, she discovers a sinister secret. Alone in the cellar after Ratchet is called away, she confronts the ghost of Rosalinda who met an untimely death during the “saw the woman in half” trick. The ghost believes it was not an accident and calls upon Miss Pickhart to release her. To do this Miss Pickhart must relive that fateful night and climb into the cabinet. It seems as though she too is to meet a grim death, until the play takes an unexpected twist.

TWITCH IN TIME:
John may have just spotted a Windy – a rare bird not seen in the UK for over a hundred years. But his wife is keen to start her drama group meeting and is cross her house has been invaded by “twitchers”. Now the bird won’t reappear and the meeting is bothering the twitchers and vice versa.

GENTLEMEN CALLERS:
Lavinia and her friends like to meet regularly for afternoon tea and cribbage. The old ladies are disturbed by three burglars who quickly find that, with these wily old ladies, they have taken on more than they expected. In fact it’s the last job they ever do.

The Fat Lady Sings by David Tristram plus sketches from “Moments in Life” by David Hampshire and a fun quiz

Another great comedy by David Tristram and some amusing sketches – plus of course our usual fun quiz with the almost legendary great prize for the winners…

About the plays:

We performed 3 sketches from David Hampshire’s brilliant series ‘Moments in Life’ – these take a wry look at life exposing a range of emotions from hilarious to the ridiculous… so we have 3 sketches one exposing the seemingly un-putdown able nature of the ubiquitous mobile smartphone, another the deadly sin of greed and where it takes you… and a third which takes a poignant look at the Acting life.

Our main dramatic performance will be a hilarious one act play: ‘The Fat Lady Sings’, featuring the familiar ‘Little Grimley’ characters: Gordon, Margaret, Joyce and Bernard who are back to tackle yet another threat to the survival of their amateur theatrical group – this time in the shape of a rival am-dram newly formed in their village who are set to upstage them with an award-winning musical.

The feisty four pull together to devise a fiendish plot to scupper the rivals. Needless to say, all does not go as planned… could this finally be the end of the Little Grimley Amateur Dramatic Society?