The prospect of watching “The vicar of Dibley” on a Friday night for me normally means I’ve got nothing better to do and it’s all that’s on the telly. However Last Friday night I went along to the landmark theatre to watch the
The script must have been equally a blessing and a curse to work with. It seemed to deviate very little from the original TV series, and at times was a little predictable. This must have made directing the show easier in one respect because the cast could base there characters on the already very strong performances. But it also must have been frustrating to have such a restrictive show which couldn’t really deviate from how it had been portrayed on the television. I almost expected an alternative ending. Although I suppose when you’ve got a good format for a story you might as well use it, “if it ain’t broke don’t fix it!”
The show ran for two nights and with one matinee performance it called for a good performance every single show. So, to watch it on opening night and be as impressed as I was I think is a credit to all the cast. The style of the set changes was quite interesting, the cast had to bring on the items of scenery that they needed and then take them off with them when they had finished, the crew took care of some of the bigger items. So there was a high potential for mistakes. But to the untrained eye it seemed to work very well.
Individually it’s hard to pick out a best performance. Debbie Hadley who played the vicar had the performance down to a fine art, she had the bubbly charisma and personality of Geraldine Granger, and the visual presence! I’m not sure if it’s P.C. to say that but the fact is a thin Vicar of Dibley just wouldn’t have been as believable. Elena Wright portrayed the role of the dipsy Alice Tinker perfectly, adding fuel to the blonde stereotype. Ted Turners character David Horton was every bit toff “lord of the manner” character he should be. Allowing Laurence Butler to bounce off him as his absent minded son. Frank Pickle was played by Robert Zarywacz who, as in the TV series got a fantastic reaction with his “coming out” speech on “Dibley FM”. And I don’t know how the cast kept a straight face for some of the lines that the characters Jim, Owen and Letitia delivered. In particular the; “Is sex with poodles always wrong?” Radio debate. I’m sure I heard a similar discussion on our local radio station not that long ago!
For me the icing on the cake was the scheduling of the show. The second half of the show was the Christmas special episode, where Alice Tinker gives birth during a village performance of the nativity. With Two weeks to go until Christmas in the real world this show was exactly what I needed to get me into the Christmas spirit. I half expected it to be snowing outside the theatre when I left! Thank you Small Pond productions.
