Curtain Up on Murder - Norbury Theatre, Droitwich (From Worcester News)

Curtain Up on Murder - Norbury Theatre, Droitwich

3:12pm Friday 22nd May 2009

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It was a simple stage with minimal scenery, basic costumes and only a few props.

Yet Norbury Theatre's Curtain Up on Murder still delivered at least one moment of pure terror.

Bettie Monktelow's clever tale of an am dram rehearsal with deadly consequences was performed with skill and ease. The scene was set in an end of pier theatre on a stormy night.

The sound effects interspersed throughout added to the building tension, although a few less noisy seagulls would have been adequate.

The players gathered to rehearse under the guidance of the delightfully grouchy and pompous Martin but all ideas of practice were soon forgotten as the group realised they were trapped in the theatre.

The night drew in, blame was cast, an affair was revealed and horrific accidents began occurring. The sweet and motherly Moppet tried to comfort everyone but the evening soon took a terrible turn. Alex and his partner Linda fight and prima donna Sylvia discovers some home truths.

The cast worked well together and the action flowed, keeping the audience in suspense from start to finish.

The younger members of the cast were as able as their more seasoned colleagues and Sandra was played especially well.

It was clear from some excellently arranged scenes that this had been ably directed and one particular scene with the lady in white was so well done my heart nearly skipped a beat.

The skill of the lighting team was also particularly evident, seen in this same scene and other chilling moments.

There were very few scenes that jarred, although the challenging love scenes needed a little more work.

However, this dark who-dunnit was extremely impressive for an amateur group. Best of all, the ending was a real surprise, carried of naturally and convincingly.

At an hour and a half, including the interval, it was also succinct and much better than staying in to watch some dingy TV detective show.

Curtain Up by Murder runs at Norbury Theatre until Saturday, May 23.

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