Part of
March 7, 2007
I have seen many student productions which aspire to professionalism, and which feature stars of the future. And there are some which are done for the fun of it. This production is most definitely in the latter category. Imagine The Archers Christmas Panto does Pratchett, and you’ll get the idea.
There is a huge cast, so much so that they hardly fit on stage for their curtain call. Many of the parts are more caricature than character acting, and these were done very well. Rob Morgan’s Vetinarii was effortlessly cool, cunning and three steps ahead. Tom Richards was complacently unscrupulous, if not actually menacing as Reacher Gilt. Stanley was charmingly obsessive and Groat was funnier and more on the ball than anyone else on stage. Anna Caughey admirably presented two different and equally eccentric cameos. And Toby Pitts-Tucker brought a serious note and a good deal of appeal to the golems!
But though the supporting characters were good, there was little to support – the leads were sadly lacking. They are both much more complex characters, and have to change a lot in a relatively short time. In the story Moist von Lipwig is a conman, with buckets of charisma and shark-like charm, who finds himself becoming interested in honest toil, as much to his surprise as anyone else’s. Adora is self-willed and obstinate, understandably bitter and toughened; she can’t believe she’s falling for Lipwig, nor understand the fascination. Unfortunately in this production neither character seemed solid enough, with not enough charisma or bitterness respectively, and it was in this relationship in particular that the production felt like a school play. If we can’t believe in Lipwig then we can’t believe the interactions between him and Gilt either, nor the ultimate outcome of their grappling with words.
It is obvious that a lot of effort and attention has gone into this production; the programmes are beautiful and the costumes are a triumph (especially Olivia Robinson’s realisation of the postmaster’s golden outfit and the clay men!). In general, however, it feels as if the overall effect has been overlooked in favour of the detail. Too many props, including an unnecessarily lit cigarette, and a lot of curtain shuffling made for a fussiness which was worsened by the short and choppy scenes. The adaptation of a Pratchett book will always be hard, and some of the myriad ideas will have to be alluded to rather than explored. Not enough was cut out, and with so much to pack in the cast seemed bogged down.
It’s eighth week, it’s an uneven production, it’s sadly lacking in joie de vivre, but it’s a damn fine story. Some of the cast and crew are obviously die-hard Pratcheteers: probably best if the audience is too.
There is a huge cast, so much so that they hardly fit on stage for their curtain call. Many of the parts are more caricature than character acting, and these were done very well. Rob Morgan’s Vetinarii was effortlessly cool, cunning and three steps ahead. Tom Richards was complacently unscrupulous, if not actually menacing as Reacher Gilt. Stanley was charmingly obsessive and Groat was funnier and more on the ball than anyone else on stage. Anna Caughey admirably presented two different and equally eccentric cameos. And Toby Pitts-Tucker brought a serious note and a good deal of appeal to the golems!
But though the supporting characters were good, there was little to support – the leads were sadly lacking. They are both much more complex characters, and have to change a lot in a relatively short time. In the story Moist von Lipwig is a conman, with buckets of charisma and shark-like charm, who finds himself becoming interested in honest toil, as much to his surprise as anyone else’s. Adora is self-willed and obstinate, understandably bitter and toughened; she can’t believe she’s falling for Lipwig, nor understand the fascination. Unfortunately in this production neither character seemed solid enough, with not enough charisma or bitterness respectively, and it was in this relationship in particular that the production felt like a school play. If we can’t believe in Lipwig then we can’t believe the interactions between him and Gilt either, nor the ultimate outcome of their grappling with words.
It is obvious that a lot of effort and attention has gone into this production; the programmes are beautiful and the costumes are a triumph (especially Olivia Robinson’s realisation of the postmaster’s golden outfit and the clay men!). In general, however, it feels as if the overall effect has been overlooked in favour of the detail. Too many props, including an unnecessarily lit cigarette, and a lot of curtain shuffling made for a fussiness which was worsened by the short and choppy scenes. The adaptation of a Pratchett book will always be hard, and some of the myriad ideas will have to be alluded to rather than explored. Not enough was cut out, and with so much to pack in the cast seemed bogged down.
It’s eighth week, it’s an uneven production, it’s sadly lacking in joie de vivre, but it’s a damn fine story. Some of the cast and crew are obviously die-hard Pratcheteers: probably best if the audience is too.