Thursday 14 April 2016

Stones in his Pockets Review



Arthur Burke, a long-standing member of Progress, recently watched Stones in his Pockets and sent us the following review:
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OK, I’m going to fess up and say I am a member of Progress Theatre, so I do have a vested interest in the place. But my mother taught me always to tell the truth, so if one of their shows is rubbish, I say so.
No danger of that here, though. Marie Jones’s Stones in his Pockets works very well. It doesn’t have a plot so much as several intermingling subplots. It’s about Charlie and Jake, two Irish extras on a film set. They both know they’re at the bottom of the heap. They’re never allowed to forget the huge gulf that exists between the stars and the extras. Charlie, played by Christopher Hoult, tries to hide his sadness behind an ebullient optimism. Owen Goode plays Jake as an almost broken man. He is generally accepting of his position, but the fag end of his pride creeps out occasionally.
Charlie and Jake are not the only people on the film set. But Christopher and Owen are the only people on the stage. How does that work? Well… brilliantly. With minimal props and the occasional hat, the two actors morph energetically into all the other characters. Everything’s done with changes in voice and body language. Owen minces around like Harry Solomon to play Assistant Director Aisling and twists himself into Verbal Kint when he’s the drug addicted Sean. Christopher camps it up as the other Assistant Director, Simon, and even manages to be convincing as a glamorous American actress. (I’m guessing this is why he shaved his beard off before the show.) It says a lot for the actors’ skill that it’s very easy to suspend disbelief. And there’s never any confusion about which part they’re playing when.
John Goodman’s direction keeps everything moving at a fast pace. He allows the two performers free rein to use their considerable talents. And Kelly Hugo deserves credit for agreeing to be Assistant Director of a play that regards assistant directors as the spawn of Satan.
I have a few doubts about the play itself. Some of the transitions from comic to tragic are a bit jarring. But this doesn’t detract from the enjoyment of the evening. It’s primarily a showcase for two versatile and charismatic actors. Go and see it. And be nice to Christopher and Owen if you see them in the bar afterwards. After playing fifteen characters as well as doing some Irish dancing, they will be a bit tired.