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.
