Archives - November 2006
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Archives - November 2006 |
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Produced by Clare Buckland
THE PLAY
Comedy, set in New York in the 70s. After being thrown out by his long-suffering wife, obsessive, neurotic Felix Ungar is invited to stay with his oldest and best friend Oscar Madison. Unfortunately, Oscar is probably the least house-proud human being alive - and likes it that way - which is the main reason his wife left him.
What follows is an entertaining battle of wills as Felix tries to get Oscar organised and Oscar tries to lighten Felix up. It almost ends in tears after a disastrous double-date brings on a final confrontation between the two men - but they manage to resolve their differences and remain friends.
FROM THE GROUP
For my first production, I was
lucky enough to have been given the chance to produce a very well known piece –
The Odd Couple, of course immortalised on the silver screen by Jack Lemmon and
Walther Matthau. I had acted in plays, and even prompted before and the
directors made it look so easy, what could possibly go wrong?
I had an incredibly strong cast of men, including those who had played
inspectors, cardinals, and even the world’s most famous detective, once again,
what could go wrong?
Well…., one of my ladies dropped out just before the first rehearsal leaving me
with a gaping hole in the cast, which was ably filled by Lyndsey, who very
kindly agreed to take a part on short notice.
I realised that despite the wealth of acting experience on show, it was down to
the director to pull it all together to form a play worthy of watching. No one
had let me in on the secret that EVERY decision has to be made by the director,
how to say a line, where to stand while saying it, what colour the wallpaper has
to be.
It was a hugely daunting task. Not made any easier by trying to get people to
speak and deal cards at the same time, which to this day remains an impossible
task even for the most accomplished of actors. You can get them to laugh on
demand, you can get them to cry on demand, they can pretend they are in heaven,
in hell, at the beach, on holiday, but you cannot, and I repeat cannot, get them
to deal cards until the actual night of production.
Oh yes, production, that would be the day that I got a call from one of my cast
to tell me that he had put his back out and was unable to walk, let alone act.
Production was also the time that one of the main characters was struck down
with a sore throat of epic proportions. Had I needed a character to appear to
be struggling on even though every word was excruciating agony, then the Oscar
would have gone to Stuart.
However, in true Cissbury Players style, we pulled it off, and even though I do
say so myself, it was dammed good.
Steve jumping into a part with a days notice, Stuart croaking his way admirably
through 3 nights of a very wordy part, Ken coming out of a self imposed
retirement, and a back stage crew to be proud of.
The cast decisions that a producer makes are often dictated by who is available
at which time, and I fell very very lucky with the Odd Couple. My cast were
without a doubt brilliant, and despite being directed by a complete novice, they
stepped up to the plate and made a play that was of the highest calibre.
My advice to new directors is next time you sit in on a rehearsal, don’t watch
the action on stage, look what the producer is doing, because that is often
where a play can be made or broken.
Producing The Odd Couple was one of the most mentally challenging things I have
ever done, as well as one of the most rewarding, and I would strongly advise
anyone to seriously consider giving directing a go, because it just might turn
out to be fun.
Clare - Producer
(Click To View)
PREVIEWS & REVIEWS
Preview from the Worthing Herald, 9th November 2006
Review from the Worthing Herald, 23rd November 2006
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