Theatre review: Gone to Seed

The cast of Gone to Seed. Photo / Supplied

Gone to Seed
Te Puke Repertory Theatre
Reviewed by Angie Belcher

If you're after a great night out you can do no better than going to the Te Puke Repertory Theatre's latest show Gone to Seed.

From crack-up, cringe-worthy jokes to great belly laughs, this very witty and cleverly written, award-winning script by Tim Hambleton will have you laughing out loud.

Before the opening night of any Te Puke Repertory show I always question whether or not the cast can live up to the hype of their previous productions. I needn't have worried; this latest offering from first-time director Bernard Holmes, confirmed that the cast and crew of the theatre have definitely not "gone to seed".

The play's setting and characters will be familiar to anyone who has belonged to a community club or organisation. Monthly meetings, agendas, dwindling memberships and financial difficulties all inevitably lead towards the brainstorming of fundraising ideas. But when selling cheese rolls, nude calendars and second-hand sales are off the list, what options are left?

The play has a number of faces familiar to Te Puke audiences, Callum McKenzie (Alec, the retired cabby), Brenda Cooke (Sandra, a recently widowed ex-bank manager), Colleen Pye (no-nonsense chairwoman Pam), Maggie Marriner (Maureen, retired school principal) and Kay Aldridge as ex-high court judge and increasingly forgetful Elizabeth. The fact that many of these actors know each other and have performed together in previous productions, allows them the opportunity to connect and interact with natural ease. Their expressions and body language are a pleasure to watch.

Among the many stand-out performances were those by Brendan Smith (the effeminate Nigel) and Elizabeth Rose (hard-of-hearing Esme) who was making her stage debut. Rose is a new face to Te Puke Repertory and one I hope we see a lot more of.

The set is as austere as a church meeting room with clever touches such as small religious statues and framed pictures of the Lord and the reverend. There is nothing superfluous on stage and even the smallest prop, like the detective's pen, draws our attention.

While most of the action takes place around the hall meeting table, there are a number of smaller scenes that are delivered in the small church office between the perfectly cast Vince Shaw as the not-so-pious reverend, and the bumbling detective brilliantly played by Hamish Avery, returning to the stage after a 30-year absence. The perfectly timed repertoire of quick wit and one-liners is delivered as a polished performance. 

For older members of the audience there will be many familiar moments, the popping of pills, cups of tea, memory loss and misinterpretation caused by loss of hearing. There are plenty of reasons to laugh at ourselves but all are equally balanced with the more poignant moments of ageing.

Not only is this a play that will give you lots to laugh about but you're bound to learn something about rhododendrons without watching Esme's 1600 slides.

One suspects that Te Puke Repertory will not suffer the fate of some community groups but plays like this will only increase their popularity.

Warning: If you wear hearing aids be prepared to quickly turn them down when the siren goes off.