Noises Off
May 5-7 and 10-13
Florence Simmons Performance Hall, Charlottetown
written by Michael Frayn
Director: Keir Malone
Production and Publicity: Marti Hopson
Stage Manager: Sharon MacDonald
Cast
MARTI HOPSON: Dotty Otley / Mrs. Clackett
RICHARD HAINES: Lloyd Dallas
COLIN HOOD: Garry LeJeune / Roger Tramplemaine
AMANDA RAE DONOVAN: Brooke Ashton / Vicki
AMY SOBOL : Poppy Norton-Taylor
LAURA STAPLETON: Belinda Blair / Flavia Brent
NOAH NAZIM: Frederick Fellowes / Philip Brent / Sheikh
MIKE MALLALEY: Tim Allgood
BRIAN COLLINS: Selsdon Mowbray / Burglar
ANTHONY WELSH: Custodian
Production and Crew:
Assnt Stage Managers: Lindsay Schieck and Afton Mondoux
Set Design and Builder: Garnett Gallant
Set Construction: Cyril Armstrong, Greg Ellard
Set Coordinator: Brian Matthie
Costumes: Pam Jewell
Properties: Kate Martin, Sharon MacDonald
Lighting and Sound.: Pat Caron
Other Team Members/ Stagehands: Leonard Bannister, Gordon Cobb, Colin Hood, Mike Mallaley, Cyril Armstrong, Davis Nicholson
Photography: Brian Collins (Landwash Studios) & David Gladstone
Videography: Greg Stapleton
Graphic Design: Maggie Lillo, Marti Hopson, Lindsay Schieck
After being postponed for more than three years due to COVID-19, ACT was able to bring 'Noises Off' to the stage May 5-13, 2023. For a farce about how things can go awry in theatre, what better example of life imitating art!
'Noises Off’, by Michael Frayn offers a plethora of challenges to any amateur or professional theatre group. The action is fast paced, the props fly across the stage and the entire set needs to be moved….. twice. The plot tracks a motley group of thespians trying to put on a touring show… in which nothing goes according to plan. Action and intrigue, both on and off stage, play a major role in this farce. So does the slamming of seemingly endless doors in the two-story set – a set that is so central to the story, it might deserve top billing! Nonetheless, ACT (a community theatre) decided they were up for the challenge.
For Keir Malone, a big part of the appeal of ‘Noises Off’ was giving the audience a farcical, exaggerated look behind the curtain – into what is involved in putting on a play.“For every moment you see on stage, there is the story of how the actors got there, and the possibility that it will go wrong. That’s live theatre!” ACT first produced this show in 1996- a show that included many well-known actors and production crew members.
ACT was extremely lucky to have Garnett Gallant joining them for set design and construction. Gallant, with almost 50 years of theatre experience (notably with the Confederation Centre of the Arts), built the intricate set in pieces in 2020, but COVID-19 saw the production delayed again and again.
The set had to be constructed in many small pieces, one floor at a time, and then pieced together like a puzzle. It wasn't until very close to opening night that all the pieces were assembled in one place, and the finishing touches were completed.
ACT was also fortunate to have financial support ResourceAbilities, The Construction Association of PEI, Allyson Kane- Century 21 and the Architects Association of PEI. Other sponsors and supporters included HR Atlantic, the Lowther Group, Landwash Studios, Charlottetown Veterinary Clinic, Steph Betts, Lisa Goulden, Samantha Bruce, Gordon Cobb, Carr's Oyster Bar, the Fox and Crow, the UPEI Student Union .
Also thank you to: Gloria Hastie and the Florence Simmons Performance Hall, all of our set turners and builders and movers and script readers, David Gladstone, The Island Jubilee, Holmes Construction, Charlottetown Rural, Birchwood School, St. Paul's Anglican Church.
