Blackadder II

The beloved 1980s Blackadder series has been adapted to create an hilarious 3-act stage show now on stage at Beaumaris Theatre. Co-directors, Dan Bellis and Harrison Ewart-Dart adapted three episodes from the BBC television series 2 written by Richard Curtis, Rowan Atkinson, Ben Elton and John Lloyd, to create Blackadder II.

Set in the Elizabethan period, Blackadder II tells the story of Lord Blackadder and his quest for power, position and wealth. With an ensemble cast of six, cleverly embodying 15 quirky characters, the storyline weaves in and around the six main characters with colour and hilarity as our hero ends up in absurd situations. This show has been described as witty, insane, ridiculous and just plain bonkers. The audience was engaged throughout as manifested by lots of laughter and joy on their faces and the actors seemed to be having a ball too.

The principal cast featured Ben Zagami as Lord Edmund Blackadder, Sam Wyles as Baldrick, John Morgan as Lord Percy, Hanna Hosking as Queen Elizabeth I, Daniel Cooper as Lord Melchett and Wendy McRae as Nursie.

Ben gave a creditable performance as the witty Lord Blackadder. Sam as Baldrick managed to maintain composure and character throughout. John as Lord Percy was delightfully naïve.  Daniel (Lord Melchett) had the accent down pat, as did Hanna as Queenie, while Wendy as Nursie delivered some very funny lines with perfect innocence.

The actors collectively playing 15 additional roles were  Andrew McDougall, Bek Chapman, Chris Kirby, LB Bradley, Georgy Charles and Samantha Stone.

One word for Georgy Charles’ young crone and LB Bradley’s doctor: hilarious! Along with Andrew, Bek, Chris and Samantha, the ensemble cast were all so versatile and engaging as they changed costume to embody each new character. Andrew McDougall as Lord Flashheart entered the stage with aplomb, was larger than life and the audience just loved him.

There was a team of four on costumes lead by Cherylynn de Vries. This team did a brilliant job creating costumes to represent: the rich, the poor, the Queen, puritans, crones, abductors, torturers and more, and each costume was well-suited to the actor, enhancing their characterisation.

Sally Fleming and her props team made a remarkable effort in devising various body parts, the odd vegetable and a torture chamber etc. to embellish each scene.

The set was sparse with four working areas pre-set, but it worked well in creating context on a small stage without confining the space, for a show that had numerous scene changes. 

Lighting and sound were well done and integrated seamlessly.

Seating is cabaret-style with 10 at each table.

Lynette Williams