Edward Alderton Theatre

A Passionate Woman
by Kay Mellor

Directed by Roz Betts

30 January - 6 February 1999 (7 performances)

A doting mother finds it hard to accept that her son is leaving the fold to get married. On the morning of the wedding she retreats to the her loft and tries to relive past memories from long-kept objects...

Cast
Betty	Maureen Hardwen
Donald	Tony Coles
Mark	Peter Griffin
Craze	Chris Manning-Perry

Crew
Stage Manager	Jenny Devonshire
Assistant Stage Manager	Brenda Winn
Set Design	Roz Betts, Mick Wright, Amanda Whittle
Set Construction	Bernard Tilley, Mick Wright, John Buckle, Jim Jeram, Jerry McKeon, Tony Coles, Paul Lay
Set Tiling & Painting	Mick Wright, Amanda Whittle, Brenda Winn
Backstage Crew	Stephanie Dungate, Vicky Findlay, Mick Wright
Lighting, Sound & Special Effects	Bernard Tilley
Light Rigging	John Buckle
Lighting Operation	Shaun Buckle
Sound Operation	Amanda Whittle

Review

An attic full of surprises

The title of Kay Mellor's play A Passionate Woman conjures up the prospect of high drama and perhaps even a little naughtiness. Nothing could be further from the truth in this drama which is being staged this week at Bexleyheath's Edward Alderton Theatre.

Produced by Roz Betts, the play opens with Betty, a middle-aged mother pottering around in the loft of her house when she is supposed to be getting ready for her son's wedding. It soon becomes apparent that she doesn't like her husband, dislikes her son's wife-to-be and isn't over-fond of her own sister. She prefers to sift through her memories, bemoan what she sees as her wasted life and worry about what will happen to her when her beloved son leaves home. Almost imperceptibly the action begins to drift into a kind of Blithe Spirit theme with a ghost beginning to interrupt Betty's conversations. Drama turns into farce and farce becomes total nonsense as all kinds of diversions take the story towards pure fantasy.

This play cannot be placed in any normal category but the EAT production is one of the most comic and inventive I have seen in a long time. The set offers a large slate roof, brick chimney and attic, where most of the action takes place. The latter looks authentic with its prams, insulation, old toys and assorted household junk. And yet it is suddenly transformed into a 1960s dance hall with flashing lights and sound that echoes as if played in a large space. Then everything reverts to the roof space with equal rapidity. There is a fine array of special effects and sound effects, and superb lighting. Bernard Tilley, Mick Wright and John Buckle have achieved marvels within a very limited space and the director has excelled in masterminding such a complex scenario.

We must not forget the actors. Maureen Hardwen gives a mesmerizing performance as the somewhat unpleasant mother and she succeeds in shedding about thirty years in age when she steps back in time. Tony Coles hams up his role as her husband with considerable zest and Peter Griffin excels as the bemused son. Chris Manning-Perry, too, is perfectly cast in the role of a ghostly past lover that demands style, sexual attraction and an air of eerie mysticism.

Roy Atterbury

Kentish Times | 4 February 1999

A Passionate Woman by Kay Mellor

A Passionate Woman
by Kay Mellor