Little Theatre Society In Comedy Reading

Chronicle (Levin), 11 July 1949, Page 4

Little Theatre Society In Comedy Reading

I " I For its July reading the Levin ! Little Theatre Society chose Arncf.d j Helsby's happy little comedy, "The i Camel's Back." The producer was ! Miss M. E. Blenkhorn and she is to | be complimented on the manner in | which she so effectively staged this | play. Comedy so often calls- 'for I situations which take careful hand- | ling, together with precision timing I- and a fine sense of positiona-1 Igrouping. The producer proved Ithat she was fully acquainted with | these facts, apd the manner in | which she had ■ coached her cast I Left little to be desired. Especially I pleasing was the 'timing of the I several entrances which had to in- | j terrupt dialogue and "business" on j stage. The slightest mishandling I of such situations can ruin the I whole effect and turn otherwise ( good acting into a series of annoy- * ing pauses. Miss Blenkhorn had i no need to woxr^-in this direction. v Promising} Newcomers. I Another pleasing factor was the | appearance of many new faces in • the cast. It is- significant of the | jinterest that is being shown in the Ii society 's activities when more and more members are coming forward to take active parts on-the 'stage.

I Mrs. Hinde, who played the part of I Tilda Hannacott, a woman dominI ated. by her severe sister-in-law, i While not new to stage work, was | making a return, a-fter an absence | and interpreted her part admirI ably. Not the least of her accom- \ plishments was the continuation of ! her faeial expressions and reactions, | even when, for the time, Til'da I Hannacott retired into' the back- ? ground. | Miss Aroha Hesp, playing the | part of the maid, Cecily, read her S lines easily and competently, and f gave a very convincing portrayal of i a rather frightened and bullied [ servant girl. it is to be hoped that I Miss Hesp will soon be seen again | "on the boards." Other newcomers !were Mr. Arthur Abrahams, as Robert Sladen, an ardent young admirer of .Tilda Hannacott's !daughter, an'd Mr. George Hesp, as Samuel Meacock, the local pubkeeper who, all unwittingly, pro- | vided the solution to the problem | that dominates the play. Both S these players ^ -did well and left | little to criticise in their perform- !- ances. ^ ... The cehtrai c&aracter, old Ned | Ruddle, the grumpy f arm .foreman, | whose one remaining hope in life | was to effect the removal of his 1 arch enemy, Prudence Hannacott, 1 from the household, was excellently I taken by Mr. Austin Savell. Always | in character Mr. Savell played what I was probably one of his best per- | formances of recent years. Con- | gratulations are due to him for his I attention to makeup, a veritable I "tour de force." | The stern, tyrannical Prudence 5 Hannacourt gave Mrs. J. Todd no | anxious moments. She ruled her s make believe household in no unI certain manner, only to be shorn I of her self-possession in the end by | Samuel Meacock. Her niece, Faith I Hannacott, was played by Dorothy I Johnson, who carried out her part I in her usual eapable manner. j Mrs. Wilkinson and Mrs. J. Black S had parts as two amusing la'dies, I Mrs. Loveday and Mrs. Middletonj Jones respectively, who were strug- | gling to put on some one-act plays 9 in the village, and several times had i the audience laughing heartily at | their actions. | The stage was dressed in a bej "coming fashidn and a good house i witnessed the performance.