Friday, November 22

Tag: Nigel Barber

Annie Get Your Gun – Frinton Summer Theatre
South East

Annie Get Your Gun – Frinton Summer Theatre

As a reviewer of many years, I have to confess ‘Annie Get Your Gun’ feels like one of those underrated big shows I’d never heard of, but thank goodness I had the opportunity to watch it at the Greensward Tent, because it is a stellar production with West End credentials. If like me, you don’t feel familiar with the show name, it’s likely you’ll know some of the songs from the score: ‘There’s no business like showbusiness’ or ‘Anything you can do, I can do better’. And I’m sure by now you’ll be humming the tune! The plot is briefly as follows: Buffalo Bill (Nigel Barber) runs Wild West Shows where Frank Butler (Stephen John Davis) is his star shooter. They come upon Annie Oakley (Alex Constantinidi) a ragtag thing of a young woman, who can shoot even better than Frank. Cue a standoff,...
A Bunch of Amateurs – Frinton Summer Theatre
South East

A Bunch of Amateurs – Frinton Summer Theatre

In a world where everything is so complicated and heavy with subtext, there’s something to be said of a play that offers light hearted relief. ‘A Bunch of Amateurs’ by Ian Hislop and Nick Newman is a disarmingly simple comedy ripe for community theatres and a summer where we all need a bit of a lift. Fading Hollywood star Jefferson Steele (Nigel Barber) has been duped by his agent to thinking he’s taking a gig at the infamous birthplace of Shakespeare. Only when he arrives from the USA, he discovers he’s playing the lead role of King Lear at a tiny Suffolk village called Stratford-upon-nowhere with a bunch of am dram characters trying to save their village theatre from developers – while Jefferson is trying to save his career. Dorothy the director/ driver/ fool/ insert multiple roles...