When We Are Married – Rainhill Village Hall

Director Rosetta Parker’s superb revival of JB Priestley’s hilarious 1938 play takes full advantage of the wealth of talent Rainhill Garrick Society has to offer and even with a cast of fourteen, there was still plenty of talent remaining both back and front of house to deliver this thoroughly enjoyable evening.

Set entirely in the sitting room of Mr and Mrs Helliman (Rick Young; Tracey Duffy), it is 1920 and they are entertaining two other couples – Mr and Mrs Soppitt (David Parker; Lynn Aconley) and Mr and Mrs Parker (George Lowe; Alison Mawdsley) – as they celebrate the silver anniversary of their triple wedding. They have got it in for Gerald Forbes (Tom Nevitt), the church organist, who has been seen out with a girl at night, something very shocking for that day and age. What they don’t know is that the girl is none other than Nancy (Sophie Brogan), the Helliman’s niece who resides with them. Gerald however is holding the trump card: a letter from the vicar who had married them all those years ago confessing that he wasn’t qualified to perform the ceremony meaning these three upstanding couples had spent the last twenty-five years living in sin.

The fun of the piece most definitely lies in its playing, with everyone up to the task and some. D Parker’s expressive performance perfectly embodied the henpecked husband which made his subsequent transformation all the more impressive, with Aconley an absolute delight as his domineering wife who finally gets her comeuppance. Young nails the pompous intellect of a self-made man who turns out to be too clever for his own good, whilst Duffy’s self-assured ‘wife’ leads us a merry dance on her emotional rollercoaster. Lowe’s dour Yorkshireman would give Monty Python’s four a run for their money any day of the week, whilst the long-suffering Mawdsley superbly draws our sympathy and has us rooting for her throughout the play, and perhaps sorry for her at its conclusion.

Put aside any misgivings you may have that this could be a dated period piece, it is a classic farce whose wheels are kept turning with an array of supporting characters providing delightful cameos.

Edi Tinsley took centre stage and held it brilliantly with her bitter housekeeper dishing up revenge, whilst Jo Webster’s strong performance as the simple but well-meaning maid kept the action unfolding. Tim Evans’ journalist eager to cover proceedings was one of his best performances, whilst Brogan and Nevitt proved a delightful pairing with their strong chemistry.

Michael Brennan was impactful as ever with his Rev. Mercer keeping everyone on the moral high ground, whilst in contrast, Linda Saavedra’s sparkling Lottie Grady reinforced the adage that what goes on in Blackpool should most definitely stay in Blackpool. Gerald Walker’s inspired performance as the well-oiled photographer worked as much from the brilliance of his own acting as it did from the response it elicits from those on stage with him, much to the audience’s delight.

Designed by Richard Parker, the set and staging superbly caught the period and was all the more impressive with its attention to detail such as the conservatory doors to the off-stage garden, with the absence of flats, the cast had a larger space in which to perform with their period-piece costumes adding a further layer of authenticity, with a clever choice of music to herald each scene.

When We Are Married performs at Rainhill Village Hall from 17th-19th October at 7.30pm with tickets priced at £9 and available from Rainhill Post Office or by calling 01744 606067. Alternatively, tickets can be booked online via www.ticketsource.co.uk/rainhill-garrick-society

Reviewer: Mark Davoren

Reviewed: 17^th October 2024

North West End UK Rating: