Outside Edge
by Richard Harris
25^th April 2024

Celebrating 50 years of performing plays in the town, Dovercourt Theatre group staged Outside Edge, a well-known favourite written in 1979, both on the stage and later as a television serious.
The play has two very defined acting areas, the inside of the cricket pavilion and the grass outside of the pavilion.

We were welcomed by the very friendly front of house team, who were also selling raffle tickets, and shown to our seats.
The Programme was in the form of a cricket score card with the front cover on a grassed area with a broken cup and saucer on it together with a cricket ball, very symbolic of what we were about to watch. The characters being given surnames as well as their character names. The facing page listed the "Coaching Staff" i.e. The directors and technical staff names.

The acting area in the Studio is rather small, so quite difficult to fit in all the staging required, however, Simon and Abi achieved this by using two levels one of the inside of the pavilion and the other of the grass surround. The pavilion itself had three doors one to the kitchen another to the bar and a third to the changing rooms, a very solid set which can be difficult to achieve on a raised platform.
The set had all the fittings one would expect in a cricket pavilion including a dart board and an outside tap and hose. The audience entered the playing field via the archway to the car park.
The décor was, as it should be, in need of a lick of paint.

Introduction Music was appropriate the "Soul Limbo" music from Test Match Special which set the scene very nicely and played at just the right level too.
The lighting was great showing us a bright sunshine day until the end of the play when it dulled down at the rain started.

A massive array of bottles of beer, wine and spirits were on show in the bar, together with boxes of crisps and other biscuits with even more brought into the pavilion by the members of the cricket team.
Newspaper of the Socialist Worker Party and a daily paper were on display. However, I am not sure of the period the play was set in as the newspaper front page showed a recently up to date headline but there was also a dial type telephone in use.

Full sets of cricket whites, a sponsor's name emblazed across each players shirt, Rogers dreadful shorts, Maggie's leopard print coat contrasting well with Dennis' smart suit and Ginnie's brightly coloured wrap-a-round. I did feel that her shorts in act two should have been a bit more flowery rather the plain ones that she wore. Sharon's costume was a gem completely the wrong thing to wear for a cricket match much more at home in a discotheque.

The put-upon wife of the captain Roger completely sub servant and on call to his demands.
Liz started off rather slowly and a little quiet but as the play progressed her pace increased as did her projection. Miriam is on the go all the time fetching and carrying for Roger and the other members of the team and even at the end of the play when she finds out what happened in Dorking and is going to leave him and take the children, she still comes back to Roger thinking he is ill, but its only the rain starting that caused Roger "illness". So, a lovely change of character from Liz. The team captain who organises everything and everybody especially his wife, but like Liz Rob started a little hesitantly but soon got into his stride. Pleading with, cajoling, both players and wives to get them to play and do other jobs that were required, Roger is the mainstay of the play. The "straight man" stooge with everything on his shoulders allowing the other characters in the story to play their comic roles, Rob achieved this wonderfully therefore allowing the comedy roll out. A big man with various problems including a story that the reason that his wife Ginnie was not with him was because she was unwell.
Bob having been in the saloon bar with the opposition team comes to the match intoxicated, slurring his speech and staggering around, also becoming very aggressive especially towards Alex who has just run him out.
It’s very difficult playing a drunk as it needs to be more and more progressive as the play goes on, so starting by standing still and just moving the body is the best way therefore giving time to increase the drunkenness. I did feel that Jordan was a bit too aggressive early on which somewhat detracted from his altercation with Alex. Looking very much the "self-made sales manager" always able to get a deal on anything the club required, which we discover is really not the case, he just wants to be seen to be able to and uses it to make friends.
Greg gave us a real insight into his character and the problems he is having with his wife who wants to get a new house, one could see the frustration in his face and body language. Dennis has quite a liking for the ladies but is not very good at getting anywhere with them again the disappointment of this is showing in his face. Kevin is a wonderful character continually arguing with his wife Maggie, Richard gave Kevin everything from a fast-moving argument to the pathos of not being able to bowl due to blistered spinning fingers "his raison d'etre".
Richard kept up the pace required to make the most of the comedy scenes with Maggie.
A great performance, well done Richard. Kevin's other half, a very strong character both physically and mentally, one could imagine her out in the garden pulling up tree stumps, she has a heart of gold and a great love for her "little Kev"
Sophie made the most of this larger-than-life character, her body language was a joy to watch, the use of the very large coat draped around the diminutive Kevin was very amusing and also showed, at times for Kevin, her overwhelming affection.
Both Kevin and Maggie were well suited and worked very well together.
Well, done both of you. Sarah had the great disadvantage, having to lay on a sunbed down stage left, which meant all dialogue was to either cross or upstage and most of the audience could only see the top of her head, which of course did distance them from her character, it would have been of advantage to have Ginnie set slightly upstage right near the score board so the audience could see her.
As Bob's wife Ginnie has a lot to put up with, however Sara managed to create a rather laid-back persona until she finally explodes with frustration. Sara created a very confident character in Ginnie and the audience had a good deal of sympathy for her having to deal with Bob on a day-to-day basis. Unlike the rest of the team Alex is younger and very Public School more interested in himself than being a team member. Jake managed to establish his character as soon as he appeared on stage he looked and sounded very much the superior one amongst the village teammates and added to this by bringing along his latest girl friend who really didn’t fit in at all.
Jake created a really objectional Alex disliked by the rest of the team and their other halves and his treatment of Sharon was unacceptable to all. This young actor managed to give Alex just the right amount of arrogance the part required.
A lot of thought had gone into Alex’s performance in both voice and body language.
Well, done Jake. I think we all felt sorry for Sharon dragged in to watch Alex playing cricket, wearing a dress totally unsuited for a day out watching cricket and then being left by the "rat".
Katherine played Sharon just as she should be, young and rather naive, bursting into tears and dashing about all added to her characterisation. It was great to see one of the minor characters in the play make such an impact on the story line.

Directing a large cast on a small acting area is no mean feat. The action and overall pace of the production was excellent with some very comic scenes especially from Kevin and Maggie.
I have already mentioned the positioning of Ginnie and her sun lounger in the first act making it difficult for the audience to see and hear her.
When the batsmen went onto the wicket, they sat on two chairs in the front row down stage left, I did think it would have been of advantage to have walked through the audience and sat at the back maybe on the seating rostra.
Dovercourt Drama Group gave us a very enjoyable evening.

Best wishes to Dovercourt Drama Group for the next 50 years.
Well, done.

Michael Poole
Adjudicator

Outside Edge, by Richard Harris.

Director Simon Reader
Assistant Director Rob Porter

Performed at Dovercourt Theatre Group Studio on Thursday 25th April 2024, at 7.30pm

I was warmly welcomed on arrival by Margaret Coleman and Linda Potter and spoke with the Director Simon Reader and the cast after the performance.

I am always impressed by the attractive and flexible sets produced by this society and this was the case again. A new set had been designed and constructed by the society with a small stage added which gave the impression of a bigger performance area. As the plot centred around a cricket club and match a small cricket lawn was placed in front of the stage with steps leading to the pavilion. There were good entrances on and off stage and a scoreboard on the left. Lighting and sound worked well with pink and blue lights used. Costumes were all relevant with the males sporting cricketing whites when appropriate.

All the characters were very well cast using the many talents in this society. Every actor performed extremely well and this was an excellent choice of play for the society with plenty of humour and strong roles.

Rob Porter played Roger Dervish, the Team Captain and along with his wife, Miriam, played by Liz McLeod was responsible for organising the match. Rob was over bearing and intolerant of his wife who was lacking in confidence but she finally rebelled. Well played both of you. Jordan Brown was an anxious and nervous Bob Wiley whilst Greg McDowell played the wonderful part of Dennis Broadley. Dennis was a louche character, a man about town, an inveterate ladies' man and flirt which Greg portrayed very well indeed. Richard Kemp-Luck and Sophie Williamson, playing Kevin Costello and his wife Maggie, were perfect as the hen pecked husband and his over bearing matter of fact wife. This couple and the way they interpreted their characters were so very funny and I suspect that Richard was outside his comfort zone in this role but the pair certainly pulled it off!

Sara Talbot-Ashby, as Bob Wiley's wife Ginnie bought a touch of class to the proceedings having arrived for some sunbathing whilst the match progressed. Jake Clover played Alex Harrington, a newcomer to the team who had different ideas as to what should be done and he had brought his new girlfriend Sharon, ably played by Katherine Johnson. Katherine captured this character brilliantly, lacking in confidence, shy and over anxious and the 'toilet' episode was hilarious.

Once the match was underway there were many hilarious moments around the scoreboard with an apparent inability to put up the correct scores!

All in all this was a fun evening with so much comedy bordering on farce and I congratulate Director Simon Reader for his innovation and imagination in staging this production.

I congratulate the society and all involved in whatever capacity and this production starts their 50th anniversary year in high style.

Hazel Hole MBE
Regional Representative
NODA East
District 11

NODA owns the intellectual Property Rights to the content of all show reports written by NODA Councillors, Reps and Assistant Reps