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Date Posted: 09:38:34 02/24/08 Sun
Author: upstartcrow
Subject: Bad Blood by Richard Stockwell

Congratulations BLT on an excellent production. The memory of Ian Wilkinson’s balletic manoeuvre on the settee will stay with me for a long time!

The set was believable (and very nice!) All the space was used and all the props. The costumes were in-character (although what “in-character” means in the context of this play, I’m not entirely sure). Tom’s wearing of a business suit during his graceful logistical readjustments on the settee gave me particular delight. The music was part of the story (city fm) but also created suspense (during Smokey’s reappearance). I loved the fight scene and the lighting heightened its suspense.

Ian Wilkinson (Tom) had great physical presence. He was also delightful when he was drunk. Yvonne Templeton (Vic) was energetic. The audience most identified with her, I feel. She got a huge laugh on Friday night after the comment: “Cheapskate!” Stephen Blundell (Smokey) had a strong physical presence and effective facial expressions. His paralysis under provocation by Tom was excellent. David Templeton (Jack) was calmly sinister. His facial expression when Smokey in desperation took a knife to his girlfriend’s throat was subtle. Julie Marie Mitchell (Belinda) managed to combine being a sullen teenager and a mature, plotting young woman.

I loved the humorous light touches. Apart from the settee and “Cheapskate!” there was Vic’s put down of Smokey telling him to be succinct. There was Tom’s line in response to Smokey’s saying, “We were trying to be careful.” There was Tom’s confession to Belinda about her grandmother and then later, after he had started trying to seduce her, Belinda’s line: “Are you trying to get the full set?”

One suggestion only - the sounds of the cars would have been more convincing if the loudspeaker had been positioned backstage.

The only negative was the emotional manipulation by the playwright of the audience during the scene where Tom seduced Belinda. This is what Tony Cross (Director) tried to warn us about in the programme notes, I’m sure, but of course he couldn’t give anything away. We the audience had been led to believe that Tom was Belinda’s father so we thought we were seeing the precursor to incest and appropriately enough felt disgust. The playwright manipulated us to feel this. Later in the final scene it was revealed that Belinda was not Tom’s daughter and they both knew this at the time of the seduction.

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