The Bench Production
Directors Notes
Road is full of the passion and fury of a young writer outraged by the state of a nation strangled by Thatcher's Conservative government. Set in a Lancashire town, the play follows the inhabitants of a single street as they prepare for a night out. Scullery, a tramp, leads the audience through the night's comings and goings, introducing us to a range of characters who are all finding their own ways of coping (or not) with their current situation.
Despite its gloomy premise, I love this play for its incredible variety and vitality. The people we meet may be in the doldrums, but many of them carry on surviving with great determination and, in a lot of cases, humour. The range of characters is huge, with roles enough to suit anyone in the company, whatever age, gender or sensibility. A good proportion of the play consists of monologues of incredible power and emotion, the language in which possesses a strange beauty, a 'dirty poetry', if you will. These monologues will present a satisfying challenge to most actors whilst also allowing for a flexible approach to rehearsals. There are no four-rehearsals-a-week roles in this play. But for those of you who like a bit of a story arc, certain characters do recur and develop as the play progresses.
The original staging was a promenade performance with pre-show and interval activity. The promenade part won't be practical in the Arts Centre space but I would like to retain as much of the immersive energy of the play as possible with action going on in the bar and gallery, as well as on the stage during the interval.
Cast
| Bald | Callum West |
| (Joey's Father) | Jaspar Utley |
| (Joey's Mother) | Sally Hartley |
| (Mrs Bald) | Zoe Chapman |
| Barry | David Penrose |
| Bisto | Nick Casey |
| Blowpipe | Peter DiFonzo |
| Brenda | Sally Hartley |
| Brian | Mark Wakeman |
| Brink | Jack Cronin |
| Carol | Rosie Carter |
| Chance | Peter Woodward |
| Chantal | Nadia Diaper |
| Clare | Sian Green |
| Curt | Nick Casey |
| Dor | Megan Tarrant |
| Eddie | Callum West |
| Eddie's Dad | David Penrose |
| Helen | Melanie Cole |
| Jerry | Jaspar Utley |
| Joey | Jeff Bone |
| Lane | Lorraine Galliers |
| Linda | Sian Green |
| Louise | Jessica Wilson |
| Louise's Brother | Dan Finch |
| Manfred | Peter DiFonzo |
| Marion | Claire Lyne |
| Maureena | Zoe Chapman |
| Molly | Ingrid Corrigan |
| Professor | Peter Woodward |
| Scotch Girl | Nadia Diaper |
| Scullery | Peter Corrigan |
| Sheena | Jessica Wilson |
| Skin-Lad | Mark Wakeman |
| Soldier | Dan Finch |
| Tina | Lorraine Galliers |
| Tom Stanley | David Penrose |
| Valerie | Zoe Chapman |
Review: An insight into Thatcher’s Britain
The 40th anniversary of the Bench Theatre company continues with the third of five plays under the theme 'State of the Nation', each representing a decade. Jim Cartwright's award winning Road epitomizing the 80's, is a protest of the Thatcherite regime, in much the same way as Steven Berkoff's 'Sink the Belgrano!'. It is a collection of diverse characters living in a poor area of a small Lancashire town. The homeless tramp Scullery is the link from street corner to household and from one character to another, during a night on one road. They include young and old, single and partnered, all reeling from the effects of recession, suffering poverty and a distinct lack of morale. Cartwright's insight into their often squalid existence is both depressing and uplifting as he unfolds man's resilience to adversity. For many escapism was taking refuge in sex and alcohol to numb the despair but even starvation in an extreme case, as being a way out.
Road has enabled director Nathan Chapman to showcase the wide variety and wealth of talent this company possesses and the cast of over 20 were outstanding. Demonstrating some very sharp characterisation, many as monologues interspersed with humorous mini sketches. Pre show and interval activity made full use of this large cast.
This is an exciting and vibrant group of actors who consistently produce a high standard with both classic and contemporary works. Their next production in September is an original play by Angela Pressland, A Higher Education, winner of a national playwriting competition specially commissioned for this slot, and it will be eagerly awaited.
Jill Lawrie, RemoteGoat.co.uk
Review: Road
As part of their 40th anniversary, Bench Theatre are performing one play from each decade of their existence and Jim Carwright's 1986 opus – Road – represents that turbulent decade in their journey. Cartwright's gritty, foul-mouthed, riotous celebration of one northern road is given vibrant life in Nathan Chapman's production.
Chapman has assembled a hugely strong cast from Bench stalwarts and faces that were certainly new to this reviewer, and each and every one of them takes Cartwright's text and runs with it.
Among the old-timers, Peter Corrigan, David Penrose, Sally Hartley and Peter Woodward impress, while Ingrid Corrigan impresses and amuses mightily as the neighbourhood mad old bag. One always has faith in actors of this standing and here that faith is not betrayed.
Among the newer members of the company, mention must be made of Melanie Cole, whose post-disco attempted seduction of a drunk soldier is the comedy tour-de-force of the evening. And Callum West's a fearless performer, too. In two scenes where he does little but listen to music, rarely does the eye stray from him.
The latter of those scenes, with Jessi Wilson, Rosie Carter and Jack Cronin, with its life-affirming philosophy in the face of all the Eighties can throw at them, is beautifully played by all, especially Cronin.
If quality local theatre is what you're looking for, look no further than this.
James George, Portsmouth News
Scenes
| Pre-show | Page 5 to Page 8 |
| Act 1 Scene 1 | Page 9 to Page 9 (He starts laughing, laughing uproariously) |
| Act 1 Scene 2 | Page 9 (Blackout) to Page 11 (Blackout) |
| Act 1 Scene 3 | Page 11 to Page 15 ("Fucking long life in' it?") |
| Act 1 Scene 4 | Page 15 (Scullery enters with a bottle) to Page 17 (Blackout) |
| Act 1 Scene 5 | Page 17 to Page 18 (Blackout) |
| Act 1 Scene 6 | Page 18 to Page 21 (They kiss. Blackout) |
| Act 1 Scene 7 | Page 21 to Page 22 (Blackout) |
| Act 1 Scene 8 | Page 22 (Professor appears) to Page 25 (Blackout) |
| Act 1 Scene 9 | Page 25 to Page 27 (Blackout) |
| Act 1 Scene 10 | Page 27 (The Road) to Page 29 (Blackout) |
| Act 1 Scene 11 | Page 30 to Page 31 (Blackout) |
| Act 1 Scene 12 | Page 31 (Scullery and Blowpipe burst in) to Page 33 (He goes off) |
| Act 1 Scene 13 | Page 33 (Darkness) to Page 35 (Blackout) |
| Act 1 Scene 14 | Page 35 (Bisto, the pub DJ, enters) to Page 35 (He exits) |
| Act 1 Scene 15 | Page 35 (The lights come up) to Page 41 (Blackout) |
| Act 1 Scene 16 | Page 41 (They remain in bed on stage) to Page 42 (Blackout) |
| Act 1 Scene 17 | Page 42 (The lights come up on Joey's room) to Page 46 (The lights fade to blackout) |
| Interval | Page 47 to Page 49 (The dance continues until the record ends) |
| Act 2 Scene 1 | Page 50 to Page 51 ("COME AND BUY...") |
| Act 2 Scene 2 | Page 51 to Page 53 (Blackout) |
| Act 2 Scene 3 | Page 53 to Page 56 (Blackout) |
| Act 2 Scene 4 | Page 56 (Back to the Road) to Page 58 (Blackout) |
| Act 2 Scene 5 | Page 58 to Page 60 ("Can we not?") |
| Act 2 Scene 6 | Page 60 (The sound of Chantal's song) to Page 60 (Bald disappears) |
| Act 2 Scene 7 | Page 60 (Back to the Road) to Page 61 (They go off on the other side to Scullery and Blowpipe) |
| Act 2 Scene 8 | Page 61 (The lights come up on a living room) to Page 69 (Blackout) |
| Act 2 Scene 9 | Page 69 (The lights come up on Brink's place) to Page 84 (Silence) |
| Act 2 Scene 10 | Page 84 (The lights come up on the Road) to Page 85 (Blackout) |
