Sunday, September 30, 2012

Stepping Out Review

Stepping Out
Salisbury Playhouse, Salisbury

The Autumn season at the Salisbury Playhouse began with a production of Richard Harris' play, Stepping Out. With the promise of some tap-dancing it was irresistible for me to go and see.

The play follows eight individuals who meet together in a church hall and take part in a tap-dancing class. During each session, the audience gradually learn about each person's background, whilst watching the group gradually improve their dancing skills. Eventually the class have to prepare a dance routine for a charity evening, but as the performance nears tensions begin to rise among the members.

It is clear from the beginning that the play is looking at a couple of broadly written characters. It reminds me of the last production the Salisbury Playhouse put on in the Main House, which was Epsom Downs. The difference between these two productions however is that whilst Epsom Downs wants the audience to observe a day at the Derby, Stepping Out wants them to empathise with these individuals and their situations.

On the whole the characters were quaint. The most sympathetic character was Mavis (Rachel Stanley), an ex-chorus dancer who still had the spirit in her to do what she loves. Adrian Grove was a cute Geoffrey, the only man in the group. Imagine a Matthew Broderick with a nervous disposition and an easily influenced personality. Louise Plowright was a headstrong Maxine, who always had a mirthful attitude especially when  things got bad. However, some of the characters' personalities became tiresome. Claire Redcliffe was lovely as Dorothy, but her character's nervousness and insecurity was too much. Elsewhere it did take a long time before Vera's (Kelly Price) uppity and abrasive character was addressed.

As ever the Salisbury Playhouse production team had put together a detailed set. The church hall included a small stage, jammed windows, cluttered walls, a piano, and a large number of stacked chairs dotted around the place. Scene changes were shown by putting a spotlight on certain characters as they prepared for the lessons, which gave the sense of the passing of time. The only set change came at the end, when the whole church hall was replaced by a simple, but effective set for the final dance sequence. The highlights of the play were the dance numbers, as this disorderly dance group gradually got into full swing in preparation for the charity event.

This is worthy of a good day out. There are some charming characters and the dance sequences are excellent. See this at a Bargain

No comments:

Post a Comment