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IF A play really is only as good as its audience, then the BATS would have
been in trouble with their production of Quartet.
A very small crowd attened the intimate setting of Parkhurst Hall to see the
play on Saturday evening, partly due no doubt to difficulties in obtaining
tickets for the show in advance through no fault of the BATS.
Luckily the actors in this charming little piece motivated themselves
well-enough to put in a set of performances which deserved a bigger
turn-out.
Ronald Harwood’s witty script sees four retired members of an opera singing
quartet spending their final days in a nursing home for classical
performers. There they chew over the past, what’s left of the future and
have a few racy conversations in between.
Every year, the residents celebrate Verdi’s birthday with a gala concert -
but on this occasion things don’t go quite to plan.
Only four actors appear on stage for the whole of the show, so it is vital
they are up to the task and engage the audience.
The BATS selected made a good fist of things. Paul Le Sueur as Reggie comes
across as kind and thoughtful, with a melancholic edge to his performance.
Dorothy Webb plays Cissy as a confused and vulnerable old singer who had
something of a wild past. Rachel Steven preens nicely as the diva, Jean
Horton, who walked out on Reggie years ago and is now making life difficult
for him again.
Probably the stand out performer and strongest of the cast was Paul Goring,
who clearly loved the role of the lecherous Wilf. He stole most of the best
lines and seemed to relish playing the larger than life character, complete
with his greying hair and one-track mind.
The ending grated slightly, in that, although it packed an emotional punch,
it would have been far better served in a larger auditorium with more of an
atmosphere.
Director Kate Walsgrove can be well satisified with her efforts though - it
is just a shame it wasn’t seen by a few more people.
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