HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 1994-07-06, Page 30PAGE 30. THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, JULY 6,1994.
Down in the bam
It's a father and son confrontation on the farm as David
Young as Wayne, left, and Ted Johns as Aylmer Clark,
argue modern and conventional farming practices in Johns'
play He Won't Come in From the Barn, which opened June
29 at Blyth Festival.
Theatre Review
Reviewer says
Johns still a hit
E ntertainment
Broadway comedy at HCP
By Christina Roulston
Ted Johns is still an obvious
favourite for Blyth Festival goers.
Opening night of Johns' play He
Won’t Come in From the Barn saw
a full house packed with Johns*
fans from his early days at the
Festival, and they appeared to love
him just as much as ever.
This was my first time seeing the
show that Johns both wrote and
stars in, since I was too young the
first couple of times the production
appeared on the Blyth stage. I
found I couldn't really appreciate
the political aspects of the play: I
have little knowledge of the
problems of today's farmer. I did,
however, enjoy Johns' sense of
humour and the crazy antics of his
character Aylmer Clark.
Aylmer is quite the interesting
man, who does not dwell on the
same plane of reality as the rest of
the world. He sees himself being
quickly passed over by the
technology and progress of
mankind and he doesn't deal with it
in the-way one would normally
expect - he decides not to come out
of the safe haven of his bam ever
again.
What is most bizarre is that
Aylmer's new lifestyle doesn't seem
to faze his wife Rose at all. Rose is
played by Johns’ real-life spouse,
Janet Amos who has returned to be
the theatre's new artistic director.
The on-stage chemistry of Johns
and Amos is wonderful to see and
they have a way of bringing the
play to life.
The set design by Glenn
Davidson is fantastic. The sense of
sitting in one of those old rickety
bams is genuine from the rotting
beams right down to the livestock.
Two live cows tethered in the back
comer of the set give to the atmo
sphere, often sending the audience
into a titter doing what duties cows
do best. Chickens and pigs also
grace the stage.
The supporting cast, including
Cliff Sanders, David Young, and
Thomas Huff, have a tough job
keeping up with a hilarity of Johns,
however, they pull it off. Sanders
as Anton, Aylmer's neighbour, is
very amusing to watch and
occasionally manages to steal the
stage from Johns with his slapstick
behaviour. A visit to Aylmer's farm
from a government veterinarian
official, played by Andrew Croft, is
one of the most funny scenes of the
play and it reminds us all of why
government has such a bad name.
To those of you who have never
seen a Ted Johns production, I
recommend you see He Won't
Come in From the Barn, if not for
the fun of it, then to learn
something about the problems of
today’s farmer.
For those of you who have seen
the play in former years, I
recommend you take a trip down
memory lane and visit an old friend
again. But you had better hurry,
because tickets are selling faster
than hotcakes!
BUILDINC TOMORROW
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A sensation on Broadway,
London's West End and across
Canada, Lend Me a Tenor by Ken
Ludwig finally comes to Huron
Country Playhouse from July 5 -
July 16.
It is the biggest night in the
history of the Cleveland Grand
Opera Company. Tito Mereilli, a
world-famous opera singer, is to
perform his greatest role at the
gala, season-opening benefit
performance. Through a
wonderfully hilarious series of
mishaps, Mereilli passes out,
unable to perform. What follows is
a zesty intelligent comedy that will
also delight farce aficionados.
Portraying II Stupendo (as he is
known to his fans) will be Sandy
Winsby making his HCP debut.
Mr. Winsby brings a long list of
credits to the Playhouse including
Gus, the theatre cat in the original
Toronto and touring productions of
Cats.
Making a return to the Playhouse
stage is a funny-man Paul Brown as
Max. Audiences will remember Mr.
Brown from last season's hilarious
farce Out of Order. Also returning
to the HCP stage are John Gardiner
(Saunders), Diane Fabian (Julia)
and Shelley Peterson (Diana).
Appearing for the fist time on the
HCP stage are Anne Louise
Bannon (Maria). Marguerite Pigott
(Maggie) and Paul Herwig
(Bellhop).
Directing this comedy is Max
Reimer, artistic director and
Play opens
July 5
Continued from page 29
creation of a live radio broadcast
from the 1940's. This production
of swing ballads and big band
sounds featuring over 75 songs
from the era, features sparkling
marathon performances from three
actor-singer-dancers Shelley
Simes ter, Eric Degray and Deanna
Overland.
Completing Bluewater's first pro
duction team is Musical Director
Sandy Thorbum and Choreogra
pher Kit Watkins. Thorbum most
recently directed the music for
"City of Angels" presented by the
Brampton Musical Society, while
Ms Watkins has choreographed and
performed in several productions at
the Burt Reynolds Theatre in
Jupiter, Florida.
"Blue Champagne” opens July 5
with a gala celebration attended by
the Lieutenant Governor. The
Bluewater Summer Playhouse also
offers the nautical musical comedy
"Dames at Sea" and the delightful
ly popular "Nunsense" later this
summer. Tickets for weekday per
formances are $15 and for weekend
shows $20. Individual tickets and
specially priced packages are still
available by calling the box office
at (519)396-5722.
(Buc(^& (Doe
for
BARB ALEXANDER
& STEVE BOWLES
Saturday, July 9
9 p.m. -1 a.m.
Elma Community Centre
Atwood
Age of Majority
$6.00/person
Music by Ken, D.J.
general manager of Huron Country
Playhouse. The set design of a high
class hotel suite in 1930s Cleveland
is by Resident Designer Robert J.
Ivey and the wardrobe, reminiscent
of the period by Jo Zvonkin.
Technical aspects of the show are
looked after by Simon Day
(production manager/lighting
designer), Vincent Berns (stage
manager) and their support staff.
Order tickets by calling the
Huron Country Playhouse Box
Office at (519) 238-6000.
Stag & (Doe
PAT MURRAY &
DEBBIE HOY
at Lucknow Arena.
SATURDAY, JULY 9,1994
9 -1 Lunch Provided
Music by D.J.
Tickets $5.00 Age of Majority
For Tickets: 357-3435
Aged to perfection
Happy 50th Vernice
Love Your Family
re: Redevelopment
of the former Huronview
Senior Citizens' Home into
A COUNTY LIBRARY HEADQUARTERS
AND
HEALTH SERVICES COMPLEX
Members of the Public are invited to attend and give
their views on this important County initiative.
Representatives of various Community-Based
Not-For-Profit Organizations are encouraged to attend.
Meeting:
HURON COUNTY MUSEUM THEATRE,
110 North St., Goderich