Time Of My Life
by Alan Ayckbourn
by Alan Ayckbourn
Performed; 27th-29th March 2014
Produced by Sarah Merrifield
Review
by Mark Grant
by Mark Grant
A Friday evening in March turned out to be a very enjoyable experience. I'm referring to RoCo's recent production of Alan Ayckbourn's 'Time Of My Life'.
The scene is set within an Italian restaurant in the 1990's. The play starts towards the end of Laura Stratton's birthday celebrations with her husband Gerry, her son Glyn and his wife Stephanie, and her other son Adam and his girlfriend Maureen, who it is obvious Laura is not keen on. Glyn has just come out of an affair and he and Stephanie are trying to restart their marriage.
We get to the end of the party, and Maureen rushes out to the toilet after consuming plenty of booze. She ends up in the gents though! Stephanie tells Adam that Maureen loves him, while Laura says Maureen is an alcoholic. Soon the sons and their partners leave and Laura and Gerry are left arguing about family, business and life in general.
The play moves into three interwoven time-streams, although all events occur in the same restaurant: Laura and Gerry's story continues over the next two hours, largely alternating between arguments and silence. After the revelation of a very brief affair between Laura and another person, they reminisce over their many years together and it turns out the couple have not slept together for quite some time. She intends to do everything she can to stop Adam marrying Maureen. The night ends as they prepare to drive home despite Gerry being drunk.
Glyn and Stephanie's story moves forward in time as we discover Gerry was killed in a car crash after leaving the party. Glyn is struggling to cope with his Dad's business, but is more concerned about his marriage. Stephanie is pregnant and is afraid Glyn is straying again. Maureen and Adam eventually separate and Stephanie has her baby. Over dinner, Glyn announces he is leaving Stephanie for another woman, leaving Stephanie alone with the ruins of her marriage as the dessert menu is read to her. Two years on from the party, Stephanie has revitalised her life, and a now single Glyn has lost all. She wants a divorce and reveals that Adam split with Maureen as Laura blamed Gerry's death on Maureen.
Adam's life has similarly gone off the tracks and he is now a waiter in this very same restaurant. The brothers commiserate and Glyn reflects that you never recognise the moments when you are happy.
Adam and Maureen's story is retreating in time. Adam has proposed and Maureen duly accepts. We eventually learn how they met and the life Maureen has had thus far. This part of the story is the most humorous and the interplay between Adam and Maureen is superb. The play ends at the start of the party as everyone arrives. As you can see, there is lots going on within the different time lines. All this interspersed with various waiters (all played by females) and the restaurant owner.
A long play very well acted, cast and produced (by Sarah Merrifield, assisted by Cathy Henderson). It flowed extremely well and time flew by. We were all well engrossed and not once did you feel the need to look at your watch.
Adrian Widdowson, playing Gerry, was great. You could tell by his tone of voice and facial expressions, just how much of a long suffering husband he was. Vivien Hughes (Laura) was fabulous. Very domineering and forceful. Both she and Adrian 'bounced' off each other wonderfully.
Justin Archibald (Glyn), played his aprt just right. He brought Glyn's character across as someone who was never happy in anything he did, but remorseful at the same time. Lucca Hobbs (Stephanie) brought out that long-suffering wife's demure perfectly. You always felt that you were on her side. Richard Mace (Adam) brought out that quite shy and softly spoken person. He never wanted to upset anyone, but nearly always did.
Finally, Stella Wallace (Maureen). What a great part to play! This was a role that you can get your teeth into, and Stella certainly did. She had the lion's share of the funny lines.
The actors playing the waiters were quite wonderful in their interpretations. they added humour, singing and stupidity to these parts. Than you to Anji Clark, Rachel Cockburn, Andrea Hughes and Kim Tomlin. Andrea Varnavides took to the part of Calvina, the restaurant owner beautifully. Her Italian accent very good and a t one particular point when she was asleep (after consuming a fair amount of alcohol), her snoring emanated at just the right time and volume!
Once again, a very well performed play. A huge thanks to all involved, whether on stage, back stage or front of house. Already looking forward to the next production.
Photo Gallery
A selection of rehearsal photos from our production of Time Of My Life.
