Tom, Dick & Harry

If comedy is hard, then farce is especially so. For a really crackerjack farcical comedy to have been written in the first place is relatively rare; to see it staged and performed at the level of true expertise required feels like a privilege. TTP’s production of Tom, Dick & Harry is all of this, and more besides: it’s a joy!

The premise is really just a bit of shamelessly silly nonsense (albeit with a satisfyingly macabre twist running through it), but this is the kind of show that is all the more wonderful for the degree to which it embraces the inherent nature of the genre that it inhabits. Suffice to say that the action centres on a likeable protagonist who is forced by his well-meaning brothers to negotiate unexpected intrusions and distractions on a day when he and his wife really cannot afford for their lives to appear in any way disorderly…

Barry Hill once more proves himself an expert and a master at whipping up a wildly funny time on stage, directing this show with a breathless pace that exhilarates without ever tipping over into the kind of irritating, unsympathetic hysteria that can so easily bring farce undone.

Leading man Adrian Heness has long displayed an engaging aptitude for this particular brand of theatre, but the virtuoso performance he gives us here as Tom Kerwood – requiring him on stage almost without a break in sight - is very likely his best and most impressive work yet.

The entire supporting ensemble surrounding Heness is as high-quality and hard-working as he is. Selena Carr combines an inherent charisma with both credibility and likeability in her onstage presence, making the role of Tom’s wife, Linda, a delightful one.

‘Delightful’, in fact, is a word that could be applied to virtually every performance here, from Kieran Drost and Samuel Creighton (hilariously rounding out the ‘Dick & Harry’ part of the title), to Anita Glocke and Mark Bone (skilfully handling a pair of potentially stereotyped ‘wacky foreigner’ roles and making them warmly funny), with Benjamin Forster (a convincing copper), Chris Galipo (an impressively unflappable adoption agent), and the ever-reliable Damon Hill (character description withheld to preserve surprise) not letting the team down for a minute.

Tea Tree Players can usually be relied upon to deliver, at minimum, a good fun time, but with Tom, Dick & Harry, you can be guaranteed of a great fun time. Bravo!

Anthony Vawser

Note: Barry Hill is also a Stage Whispers reviewer.