I’m sure
this production has been in the pipeline for a while but it couldn’t be more
timely with its premiere coinciding with the Prime Minister’s U-turn and change
of plans for the Christmas period. This Zoom theatre production felt hot off
the press. Packed into this Christmas stocking were political satire, one
liners, and the question: what is the true meaning of Christmas today? Think of
it as a theatrical version of “Spitting Image” on Zoom.
In what has been the most extraordinary year with the
Government’s questionable handling of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Prime Minister
in this story is going all out to make sure he gets Christmas right. The PM appoints
a Minister For Christmas called Malcolm Skinner MP to lead on this work. Big
promises are made: this Christmas is going to be “oven ready”, “world beating”,
“world leading”, “strong and stable”, but “jolly careful”. Free festive jumpers
and Christmas crackers for everybody. They’re “taking back control” of the fun
right up until the New Year when everybody “continues to shake hands” during “Auld
Lang Syne”. But, can these big promises be delivered?
David Spicer’s comedy contained political squabbling, points
scoring, hilarious news captions, a multitude of metaphors, and a compilation of
political quotes. The humour expressed the public’s exasperation over the
handling of the real-life situation. Shaun Chambers’ direction encouraged the
actors to ham it up and kept the play’s pace up. However, Zoom did create slow
transitions between a couple of scenes. The familiar faces of the Northern
Comedy Theatre were joined by new performers: Natasha Agarwal, Wendi Walker, Wendy
Patterson, and Mikyla Jane Durkan. They all did a terrific job, especially the
well cast Robert Stuart Hudson as Malcolm Skinner MP – playing a politically
incorrect and bumbling buffoon.
From the common Zoom problems highlighted in the script, to the
use of graphics, music and sound effects, this production referenced and made full
use of Zoom. Consequently, it is one of my favourite shows from this company to date. The news interview exposing private sector contracts providing
inadequate goods, improper answers to questions, and familiar phrases like “let
me finish”, made you laugh-out-loud in a mirror image of real-life. The narrative
made you wonder what really happens behind closed doors in these meetings about
meetings about meetings.
Just to say that I did feel it ended quite abruptly; almost
in a way like it had to end somewhere. All things considered, once again it was
a load of fun and the dark humour made you chuckle. The company pulled out all
the stops. Northern Comedy Theatre re-framed 2020 so the audience could perceive
the funnier and the lighter side, because we all need the gift of comedy this
Christmas to see us through the tough times. Well done again to all involved.
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