Lend Me A Tenor

Under the deft comic skills of director Joe Tuppenny, an excellent cast brings great vitality to Ken Ludwig’s Tony award winning play. It’s a terrific farce and director Tuppeny adds lots of clever business to the premise of an introverted opera admin assistant having to go on and perform for a drunken, drugged and presumed dead famous tenor. Add to that high energy levels from everyone, and the audience was guaranteed great entertainment.

This production benefits greatly from having two very strong leads. Though David Lawson-Smith (Max) is actually a baritone, he has a lovely easy stage presence and a great sense of comic timing. It’s a beautifully balanced performance, endearing as well as funny. Jessica Fernando is outstanding as Maggie. She give us not only a finely tuned performance throughout, but was the only cast member to sustain her American accent throughout. She’s a delight to watch. Adam Lofthouse (Tito) has spent the last decade doing voice-overs, but finally returns to the stage where he makes a feast of Tito, the womanising tenor. It says a lot that his facial expressions are hilarious, even when in black face as Othello. The scene in which the TWO Othellos mirror each other’s moves is side-splitting as well as cleverly staged.

There’s excellent support from Peter Fowler, as CEO of the opera company. He is a valuable presence for any community theatre company. Judy Mitchell as Julia and Laell Raiteri as Tito’s hapless wife Maria are both great casting choices. Tracey Elliott (Diana), despite her experience, did seem uncomfortable in the scenes where she seduces Tito and Blake Hadlow (Bellhop) has made giant leaps since his last production here.

The set and costumes (though far more 50s than 30s) are impressive, as they always are with this company. Kudos to director Joe Tuppenny and his team for the design and construction. Little touches, like the tiled floor of the mostly off-stage bathroom, add to the credibility and the lushness of this highly entertaining production..

As always, The Basin TC offers complimentary parking, programme and all refreshments…as well as nibbles and a glass of wine with the cast after the show. I’ve said before that often there’s far better entertainment value in the community theatre production than there is in the grander professional theatres. This show is proof of that. Give yourself a day out in the hills, and then finish it with some great laughs. It’s well worth it.

Coral Drouyn