RIVERSIDE Drama Company has come a long way since its formation in 1992 and its latest offering, the hilarious award-winning West End farce Noises Off, showed the full range of the Beeson-based theatrical group’s talents. 

Michael Frayn’s smash hit play, which is currently back on an extended run in London following its success in the 1980s, owed much to the contributions of Riverside’s Jack of all trades Bob Baron who constructed a complicated set which played an integral part in proceedings. 

When the curtains opened at the Duchess Theatre in Long Eaton for act one of Noises Off there before the audience’s eyes was a visually stunning set which showed eight doors, some on a raised platform, for the play’s characters to go in and out of at timely intervals. 

Amazingly, during a 20-minute interval, the set from act one was completely reversed by a hard-working crew led by director Pat Tuffin, to reveal the setting for act two, giving the audience a backstage view of a performance and the mayhem that duly ensued. 

As if that wasn’t enough for the ambitious Riverside Drama Company, at the end of act two the action of the play called for the whole process to be repeated, during another long break, to set the scene for act three. 

Challenging 

This challenging production held no fears for the cast of nine and though the two enforced breaks between acts may have tested the audience’s resolve, there’s no doubt that they appreciated the lengths that had gone into staging Noises Off. 

There was never a dull moment and every element of traditional British farce was brought into play, with people rushing in and out of rooms, trousers falling down, mistaken identities and colourful characters wringing out the laughs. 

In essence this was two plays for the price of one and first follows the fortunes of a hapless theatre company trying to putt on a performance of a farce called Nothing On, a sex comedy. 

But the farce that they are trying to perform is nothing compared to the farce that develops between the cast backstage during the show’s final rehearsal and disastrous tour. 

Noises Off and Nothing On interlocks as cast members make their exits from the nightmare onstage into the nightmare backstage.  There is simply no escape, and the outcome leaves the audience laughing all the way home. 

Liz Turner sets the standards as absent-minded housekeeper Mrs Clackett and in a second role as Dotty. 

Challenging production holds no fears for talented cast

Riverside’s start performer Martin Holtom was in great form playing first Garry and then Roger, while Liz O’Hara, his co-star, had great appeal as the scantily-class Brooke and then in the part of Vicki. 

John Lomas (Frederick and Philip) and Janet Bradbery (Belinda and Flavia) formed a fine partnership and I particularly liked the performance of Brian Hooker in the role of Lloyd, the long-suffering but amorous director of Nothing On. 

Completing the line-up of talented players were Keith Coxon who took on the parts of Selsdon and the burglar, Pam Chamberlain (Poppy) and Paul Norris (Tim). 

Many will agree that this challenging piece of amateur theatre was brilliantly handled by Riverside who are certainly making a name for themselves as a company with a big heart whose reputation is growing all the time.