No milestone in Snow White
About the article
This is a digitised version of an article from The Cayman Compass's print archive. Occasionally, the digitisation process introduces transcription errors, or other problems.
See the article in its original context from January 1992.
Brought to you by
This production by the Cayman Drama Society, at its Prospect Playhouse which ends its run tomorrow, didn't quite make it basically because the sum of the parts was greater than the whole. Although individual were good, indeed some were excellent, somehow they did not gel together into a coherent whole.
I am not sure that the cast was greatly helped by the basic script by Ron Hall, but I will let that pass.
Something not realised by many, including audiences, is that good pantomime is difficult to do. Any rugby club can put on a bad pantomime in which a few club "hearties" behave on stage much as they do in the club house. It remains a bad pantomime, no matter how much it amuses friends.
Good pantomime is difficult, as difficult as "Hamlet" or "Macbeth"; not something to be taken lightly by exponents of the art of coarse acting. It needs pace and timing, both of which need much hard work to achieve.
Most important of all, from the actor it needs a belief, belief that he is the character he portrays, no matter how ludicrous that character may seem. If he does not believe he is that character, it is unlikely the audience will.
One of the best exponents of this was Nical Carter as the devious, obsequious chamberlain. He had a firm idea of who he was, or the Department of Education has lost its marbles letting a person like that within a 100 yards of the Middle School. I awaited his entrances and regretted his exits.
Michael Parker was also convincing as the court jester. He had the good sense to realise the limitations and keep within them. Pamela West, in the small part of Conchita, convinced. Colin Wilson as Dame Dumpling almost convinced. Obviously he had a firm view of who he was supposed to be, but I am not sure that he believed it. In the end Dame Dumpling was Colin Wilson.
As the evil stepmother Caroline Beresford-Wylie certainly looked the part, and worked to master the part, but she failed to exude the necessary evil to convince. I felt that really she was kind, considerate person having an off day.
I am not sure that Tony Rowlands ever had a good idea of who Fairy Dewdrop was. More direction might have sorted that out.
The seven dwarfs, Vanessa Holmes-West, Terry-Ann Arch, Aimee Ebanks, Laura Munyard, Rebecca Husemann, Shauna Ebanks and Caroline McCann, did well all that was required of them.
I am holding comment on two of the leader players to last for technical reasons. Maureen Parker, as Snow White, worked extremely hard at her role and Bridgette Smalling deserves a round of applause for her efforts as the Prince. However, their singing was scuppered by the sound system. I do not view recorded music is a good idea for songs in a production such as this. A small ensemble, led by a pianist, has much to commend it. It is much more "singer friendly". The pianist can slow the song down, or speed it up, as the situation seems to demand. He can play in a lower key to accommodate a singer. If a singer misses a cue, the pianist can play a couple of additional bars to bring the singer in. Most important, being out there in front, the pianist knows whether the ensemble is drowning out the singer or not.
If recorded music must be used, then lead players, at least, should have miniature cordless microphones secreted in their costume so that a sound engineer can balance voice against accompaniment.
Poor Bridgette Smalling never had a chance and got totally swamped by the music; Maureen Parker fought a valiant but futile battle. Director Alan Hall, who was in the chorus, had the lung power to be heard above the music, as did Michael Parker and Colin Wilson; poor Bridgette and Maureen did not.
While on technical matters a word of praise is in order for the wardrobe and the set.
At the start I commented that the pantomime did not gel into a coherent whole. I believe the reason for this was because there was a tendency for actors to play too much to the audience and too little to each other. Yes, in pantomime you have to interact with the audience to get them to participate, but you also have to be aware of what is going on around you on stage or the whole things gets lumpy and disjointed.
The final verdict must be that, yes, it was entertaining, but it was no milestone in the history of the Cayman Drama Society.
"Oh yes it was."
"Oh no it wasn't."
