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NOEL COWARD'S FALLEN ANGELS
13 - 15 March, 2008, at
The Playhouse, Whitstable.
FALLEN ANGELS, is one of Coward's lesser known and not very often
performed plays, but it is still Coward at his inimitable best, gay, debonair,
infinitely sophisticated in the in the style that won him his reputation
as the most successful purveyor of high comedy in the theatre. It premiered
in 1925 with the notorious Tallulah Bankhead and the less notorious Edna
Best in the leads. It had a West End revival in 2000 with Felicity Kendal
and Frances de La Tour. |
The Play:
The story, told in three acts, is a frothy nothing, but treated as only
Coward can. It provides a continuously amusing two hours, highlighted
by recurring moments of insane hilarity. The plot revolves around Julia
and Jane, best friends and both happily married to Fred and Willy respectively
for five years, but before their marriages, both had brief affairs in
Italy with Maurice, a Frenchman and great charmer. Now Maurice is visiting
London and has asked to see them both. Luckily both husbands are away
for the day playing golf, and Julia and Jane nervously await Maurice's
call. How they reminisce, quarrel, make up, get high on champagne and
quarrel again, what happens when Maurice finally arrives very late, and
the unexpected return of the husbands are some of the threads of the plot.
All is witnessed by Saunders, Julia's new maid, seemingly prim and proper
but has been positively everywhere and done absolutely everything.
FALLEN ANGELS was nearly refused its licence as "brightly written,
but extremely dubious" and that "the women's obvious willingness
to go wrong, and about their pre nuptial going wrong, would cause too
great a scandal". But Lord Cromer passed it, with only a few dialogue
changes, because he saw it as "so much unreal farcical comedy".
In 1925 the play shocked, but audiences queued for seats. The play no
longer shocks but it still provides great amusement and entertainment.
THE CHARACTERS:
Julia Sterrol and Jane Banbury are virtual twins, as are their husbands
Fred and Willy. Julia's life is essentially identical to Jane's, Fred's
to Willy's. Both women have settled down to respectable middle class lives
with dull but decent men. Both Fred and Willy love golf, perhaps a bit
more than their wives. Both marriages have reached a similar pass: We're
awfully happy", as Jane says, "and there's a lovely firm basis
of comradeship and affection and all that, but the real 'being in love'
part is dead!" The new maid Saunders has had a full, rich life and
nothing surprises her, while Maurice is an Englishman's version of a Frenchman.
He is without repressions and is all suave and self-indulgent.
Fallen Angels
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Fallen Angels
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Fallen Angels
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Fallen Angels
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The Fallen Angels.... |
...with Saunders |
Fred and Willy |
Julia and Saunders |
Fallen Angels
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Fallen Angels
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Fallen Angels
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Willy and Julia |
Jane, Maurice and Julia |
 Fallen Angels
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Fallen Angels
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Final bow |
Maurice Duclos |
The cast and all important crew. |
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Drunken rivals left audience captivated.
Audiences at this "amoral and disgusting" play will find
little to offend in the 21st century, but delicious frissons of
sexual anticipation were gloriously maintained in this production.
Despite two married friends' shared goal of rekindling passion
with their mutual ex-lover Maurice, they were given distinctive
individual personalities.
Anne Hancox made Julia largely confident and serene,
while Samantha Grant's Jane was highly strung and
mildly hysterical.
Of the supporting roles, Jim Ackhurst played Julia's
husband Fred with gentle reasonableness; and Andreas Lowson
as Willy (Jane's husband) reflected the suavity of Coward himself.
Mark Smith as Maurice, tantalizingly
appearing only in the final scene, gave the ex-lover all the Gallic
charm needed for empathy with the besotted ladies and Jill
Ackhurst's expressive facial and body language conveyed
every nuance of the maid Saunders' contempt for the gentry.
Derek Standing's early
modernist set, Susanna Gerken's delightful costumes and Pip
Piacentino's skilled direction all contributed to a stunning
production.
But the greatest acclaim belongs to Hancox and
Grant for their outstanding performances as the
two ladies whose transformation from sophisticated wives to hilariously
drunken rivals so captivated everybody.
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| Noel Coward's
"Fallen Angels"
performed by The Canterbury Players
at Whitstable Playhouse
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Reviewed by:
Delia Dengeon.
Kentish Gazette.
Thursday March27, 2008. |
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OUR SPONSORS FOR "FALLEN ANGELS" WERE:.
Jesters.com
PH Accountancy.
Director:
Pip Piacentino
Read more about Pip?
Click HERE |
Pip Piacentino
Actor: Play It Again Sam; Arsenic And Old Lace
Performance Director: The
Accrington Pals, Fallen
Angels;
Pip fell in love with Britain when stationed here with the US Navy and
decided to make it his home. His links with Kent, especially Deal, stretch
back to 1964.
Pip first appeared on stage in New York when his father brought the
three-year old Pip on stage to liven up his act. He is equally at home
as an actor, director or playwright. A member of the South London Theatre
Centre, he directed many plays for them including Peter Whelan’s
"The Accrington
Pals" which he also directed in April 2007 with Canterbury Players.
Pip is to direct Canterbury Players in "Fallen
Angels" by Noel Coward. |
The cast:
As Julia
Anne Hancox. Actor.
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Anne Hancox
Committee Member
Actor: RolePlay;
Play It Again, Sam; Fallen
Angels; Bazaar and Rummage;
Two; The Vortex.
Anne's early performances were all in music theatre. Later came a shift
to straight drama.
Her involvement with Canterbury's long-established amateur theatre group
Playcraft for 21 years and now, with The Canterbury Players has provided
a wealth of acting opportunities.
She has enjoyed numerous leading roles ranging from Nora in
Ibsen's "A Doll's House", Katharine in Shakespeare's
"The Taming of the Shrew"; the drunken and shameless Arabella
in Ayckbourn's "RolePlay"
and Julia in "Fallen
Angels" by Noel Coward. |
As Jane
Sam Grant
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Sam Grant
Actor,Singer: "Fallen Angels".
Sam started in Am Dram as a teenager with Deal Dramatic Society, then
took a long break to travel and work abroad.
She is a member of Ramsgate Operatic Society and Broadstairs Dickens
Players, for both of which she is also a committee member.
Lead roles of a musical nature include Sally Smith in ‘Me and my
Girl’, ‘Prince Orlofsky in ‘Die Fledermaus’ and
Carrie Snow in ‘Carousel’. ‘Straight’ roles include
Jean in Ray Cooney’s ‘Funny Money’ and the dual role
of Ann and Sybil in Terence Rattigan’s ‘Separate Tables’.
Sam's day job is Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL). She lives
in Margate with husband, Paul.
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As Willy
Andreas Lowson
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Andreas Lowson
Actor: La Ronde; Play
It Again Sam; Fallen Angels;
Much Ado about Nothing;
Arsenic And Old Lace
Andreas is descending the ladder of nobility. In La Ronde, he was only
a count whereas the previous year he was a duke (Twelfth Night) and before
that a prince (Caucasian Chalk Circle). He has, however, deigned to play
mere commoners in such roles as a dotty priest (Gosforth’s Fete),
a burglar, an inspector (Disposing of the Body), a solicitor, a boss and
an eccentric puppeteer uncle and now, a husband, for Noel Coward's "Fallen
Angels".
Back all but full circle now as Count John in Much
Ado about Nothing. |
As Fred
As Saunders
Jill Akhurst. Actor. Director. Director's
Assistant.
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Jill Akhurst
Director – "Palace of Varieties"
and "Bazaar and Rummage"
Director's Assistant "The
Accrington Pals"
Singer of saucy songs; Actor Fallen
Angels; Two; Arsenic
And Old Lace; The Vortex.
This is the second "old lady" Jill has played for the Canterbury
Players - are they trying to tell her something? Guildhall trained Jill
has been with the Players now for three years, during which time she has
directed "Palace of Varieties"
in 2007 and "Bazaar and Rummage"
in March this year. She also played the maid Saunders "Fallen
Angels" in (March 2008) and the Old Woman in "Two"
in July this year. She is also involved with the "Really Promising
Company" and enjoyed some success last October playing the Princess
Puffer in "The Mystery of Edwin Drood" at the Theatre Royal,
Margate. |
As Maurice Duclos
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Mark Charles Smith
Actor: For Canterbury Players Gosforth's
Fete; La Ronde; Fallen
Angels; The Accrington
Pals; Much Ado
About Nothing; Arsenic And Old
Lace
Sound Engineer for Blue Remembered
Hills.
For Chilham Players: Seasons Greetings
For Kent Shakespeare Company: Twelfth Night.
Mark is pleased to be back in rehearsal with the Canterbury Players
after a brief foray at Mt. Ephraim with Kent
Shakespeare Company's production of 'Twelfth Night'. He is looking
forward to his first 'farce'. (Comments will surely appear after that
statement!)
Mark has appeared in a number of Canterbury Players productions, as
well as end of year short films at universities in Canterbury and Hastings,
as a film extra for various productions filmed in Kent including "The
Other Boleyn Girl" and "Wild Child", in a Chris Tarrant
TV programme called 'Tarrant Lets the Kids Loose' and as a major player
in a KETV production
called 'The Sea Shall Have Them'.
Mark is looking for more TV and film work to get him out of the office
once in a while.
My Facebook page.
A recent video. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LY9qcWjPomk |
Stagecraft:
Stage Management
Prompt
Louise Gibbins. Actor. Publicity.
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Louise Gibbins
Actor: Play It Again Sam;
Gosforth’s Fete;
The Accrington Pals;
La Ronde; Much
Ado About Nothing; Bazaar and Rummage
by Sue Townsend; Woman in Two; Day
After The Fair
Louise joined the Players in 2006 & has since been involved in several
productions.
The first was Harold Pinter’s ‘The
Birthday Party’ where she was the official teapot bearer between
Acts II & III. Following the success of teapot placement, she was
cast as Councillor Mrs Pearce in Alan Ayckborne’s ‘Gosforth’s
Fete’. Louise proved herself to be a massive hit when Charlie
Jubber (Gosforth) omitted to catch her as she fell off the podium backwards.
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In Schnitzler's ‘La
Ronde’, she played a prostitute which was lucky as Louise was
concerned about being typecast! Louise also appeared in the production,
"The Accrington
Pals" by Peter Whelan. Here, she played Sarah, a hardworking
but fun loving mother in her late twenties.
Louise is seeking film extra work, her public profiles on casting websites
can be found HERE
and HERE.
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Costumes
Susanna Gerken
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Susanna Gerken
Costumes.
Susanna first trained as a teacher and then studied languages and drama
in Italy. She lived abroad for many years and has performed in different
amateur groups.
Since coming to live in Canterbury she has joined the Players and designed
the costumes for "The
Birthday Party"; La Ronde";
"Play It Again Sam"
and "Fallen Angels".
Susanna is a very welcome addition to the Players.
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