Aylesbury Waterside Theatre – until 25 June 2022
Reviewed by Susan Portman
4****
I watched the original series of Some Mothers do ‘Ave ‘Em’ from 1973 -78 almost religiously, as did the whole nation. Michael Crawford, AKA the affable but accident-prone Frank Spencer was loved by all and I canthink of no-one more suitable than Joe Pasquale to take on the task of playing ‘Frank’ to live audiences.
With Frank Spencer around, such a play is always going to be a farce –and this is what it is as he lurches this way and that from accident to incident with a childlike and honest heart full of good intentions and an unconditional love for his wife, Betty. It is a while since I have been to see a farce, and I had forgotten just how much dialogue there is. With an
improbably small cast of only six actors there were a lot of lines to be shared around, yet there were no stumbles or obvious errors which is hugely creditable.
The plot here is that Betty has exciting news for Frank, (she is pregnant) but he is preoccupied by possible newfound fame as a magician and she cannot seem to find a moment to tell him. With guests arriving for dinner and crossed wires all round, misunderstandings are guaranteed. They knew about his news, but Frank didn’t and this was weaved rather cleverly into the story.
Hilarious mishaps and DIY disasters bring the house down (quite literally) as Joe Pasquale (New Faces, I’m a Celebrity, Spamalot, The Producers) plays the lovable accident-prone Frank. He does this with great aplomb and oodles of energy. I never wanted to see an exact
replication of Michael Crawford, and Pasquale is his own man in this role. At times, he expertly offered the audience a perfect mannerism of the original Crawford character from the TV, with dexterity and classic timing. Joe has a profound stage presence for sure and the characters supported him professionally and whole-heartedly. Very impressive.
Susie Blake (Coronation Street, The Victoria Wood Show, Blithe Spirit) stars as his disapproving Mother-in-Law, Mrs Fisher. I have always known that playing a drunk is difficult but she carried this off very convincingly when the moment came in the play, proving (as if I did not know) that there are many strings to her bow when it comes to acting. It was lovely to see her ‘live.’
Sarah Earnshaw portrayed Frank’s exasperated but loving wife Betty in a way that quickly engaged the audience. Who wouldn’t feel for her when Frank says they could be together ‘for another fifty years?’ She acted flawlessly and clearly had a tremendous rapport with Pasquale. We suffered with her at times!
Moray Treadwell played a dual role of Mrs Fisher’s gentleman friend Mr. Luscombe, and also a TV representative, Mr. Worthington. I preferred the latter only because I enjoyed his performance in that role more. I can see why he was cast in the role.
James Paterson played Father O’Hara and was the recipient of some of Frank’s ineptitude from being sprayed with leaking water to falling off a chair that had a missing leg. He gave a solid performance, supporting the hapless Frank and Betty being both exasperated and confused – in character of course.
Ben Watson also played a dual role of ‘Desmond’ who worked as the cameraman with Mr. Worthington and also a police constable, and he was convincing in this role particularly.
There were some very funny one-liners as one might expect and for a small stage set with relatively few props it was possible to squeeze the very best out of it to create mishaps and mayhem, from pictures falling off walls to a whole kitchen exploding. Wherever Spencer goes there has to be carnage and this is illustrated here when he tries to juggle way too many plates at once to keep everyone happy, but it serves only to fail comically. You feel for Frank, and Joe Pasquale certainly knew how to get the audience on his side with childlike innocence and sublime pathos. In the end ‘our Frank’ is never a failure – he is just an honest
tryer.
The audience laughed uproariously at a dance scene on the stairs and the choreography was perfect. I felt that there was a clear rapport between all of the actors and it was remarkable to think that there were after all only six!
The stage set was simple enough, showing the inside of Frank and Betty’s house throughout but it was very effective, serving its purpose as the arena of farce. A few loud bangs at unexpected times jolted several audience members out of their seats and the electrical work set up for several mishaps was very clever indeed.
Frank Spencer was known throughout the seventies for his catch phrases ‘Ooh Betty’ and ‘I’ve had a bit of trouble’ but these did not appear tonight. The real success for the cast and crew is that they didn’t need to. They served up their own interpretation, imprinting their own characteristics on the roles but still keeping the audience tied to the original show. That’s to be roundly applauded.
This is a farce that reminded us of a harmless and innocent comedic past and with all the troubles in the world, now is the time to see a talented and experienced cast and crew recreate an indispensable era of British comedy.
Once again I left the Waterside Theatre with a big smile and a feelgood factor, as did the people around me. Isn’t that just as it should be? I reminded myself that there is a bit of Frank Spencer in us all and that is to be celebrated. Well done.