It’s been five years since the last Slung Low Shorts, but well worth the wait. The venue has changed to The Warehouse at Holbeck but the standard of plays hasn’t. The Producers Mark Catley, Jonathan Hall and Lisa Holdsworth have brought together some of the finest local actors and writers to stage five short pieces for our delectation. They have also been well curated in that the first begins with a form of rebirth, followed by three covering various aspects of life and concluding with the ultimate ending. Even though some of the plays, each lasting about twenty minutes, dealt with serious subjects, they all had generous doses of humour.
The evening began with Lisa Holdsworth taking to a darkened stage clad in hi-vis waistcoat and headlight, looking as though she had just come out of the queue at Greggs to supervise the reopening of the stage after the long hiatus. Orders were shouted to the lighting and sound people and soon we were ready for the off. Ms Holdsworth then proceeded to read the Riot Act insofar as the use of mobile phones and other antisocial behaviour was concerned and followed that with a moan about the state of the world in general, which reminded us that the event was taking place in Yorkshire.
The first play was Gentleman Jack Saved My Life, written by Carole Solazzo and Directed by Sue McGeorge. It featured Catherine Traveller as Bex, who had gone to Shibden Hall to meet her ex boyfriend, Ste, played by Rick Garrad, in order to sort out custody of the dog. She was accompanied by Anne – Suzan Secuk – dressed as a Victorian man, there being a Gentleman Jack convention taking place at the venue, which is the setting for the eponymous television programme.
Over the course of the piece we find that, even though Bex insisted that she missed Ste and was devastated by his departure, all was not tickety-boo with the intimate part of their relationship. It then became apparent that Anne was the alter ego of Bex, suggesting that she might wish to become more involved with those who had adopted a Gentleman Jack type of lifestyle.
We were left in a kind of limbo as to whether the Anne influence triumphed, but my money is on it having done so. I will resist making any jokes about having an each-way bet.
The second offering was Peggy Bradshaw: Grandmother At Large. It was written by James Moran and Directed by Jonathan MacConnachie. The grandmother, Peggy, played by Helen Fullerton, was ensconced in an armchair at her daughter Cathy’s house, when an off-duty policeman, Joe – Joe Drye – appears and is asked to take a seat by Peggy. Finally, Beverley, played by Emma Summerville, the snooty neighbour makes up the quartet and Peggy springs into life. She informs the assembly that she has been doing some investigating and discovered the identity of a serial killer – of cats! Beverley’s moggy was the first victim, with the disappearance of several others seeming like a mystery to the group. Peggy goes on to say that she had taken an interest in Beverley’s missing pet, as it is innocuous crimes like this which can lead people to go on to commit murder against other humans.
There then follows a passage worthy of any whodunnit, with Peggy going through the process of elimination, prompting Cathy, Tara Daniels, to dub her the Jessica Fletcher of Halifax. Eventually the culprit is revealed and Beverley accompanies Joe to arrest the miscreant.
We leave Yorkshire behind for the next play, A Matter of Standards by Larry and Paul, Directed by Lisa Holdsworth, the woman gets everywhere. I must own up to a conflict of interest here in that Larry and Paul are brothers, sharing the surname Budd, the Larry half being a writer, photographer and podcaster for Welcome To Leeds, a fine online publication to which I contribute a monthly theatre preview, so am well acquainted with the aforementioned gentleman. Actually I can’t be that well acquainted as I didn’t realise he had a hand in this until I saw him in the audience. I will endeavour to remain neutral in my judgement of the piece, which won’t be easy as it was a comedy and Larry writes a monthly preview of events in that genre for the same website. That’s why it came as such a shock to me as to how rubbish it was! He’ll probably blame his brother when I see him again.
The action is set in the Houses of Parliament, where Gerald, the Minister for Health, is waiting to appear before the Parliamentary Standards Committee accused of posting several salacious WhatsApp messages as well as fiddling expenses, spying and selling bogus PPE to the NHS during the pandemic. On top of all that he is a bit of an all round prat, depicted, a little too convincingly for comfort, by Joe Osborne. His PA, Daphne, played by Lucy Rafton, has devised a scheme to clear him of all charges by telling him to say that he can’t remember a lot of the incidents and blaming the ones he can recall, such as the WhatsApp messages, on his gofer, Scott – Richard Galloway – who is considered to be highly dispensable.
This was a parody rather than a satire and was very funny – I was obviously joking about the rubbish comment – and needless to say, there is a twist at the end, which leaves the audience feeling that justice has been done to a member who thinks they are above the law, a rare outcome indeed in the Palace of Westminster. That’s the power of comedy for you.
Playing, by Alice Nutter, Directed by Paul Chewins was next. it was a two-hander featuring Kathryn Hanks as Eileen and Katie Mae Carden as Beth. It is set in a hospital waiting room where the two women, dressed in NHS issue gowns, are waiting to go into theatre for mastectomies. This is a subject you would have thought incongruous in a light-hearted programme of plays such as this, but it was handled extremely sensitively and contained a surprising amount of humour, as the patients mulled over their lives and how the procedure would probably affect them. Eileen being a middle aged, down to earth woman and Beth a younger, one still proud of her body, especially her tits – her word, not mine. There was no plot as such, just the bonding of two people in an adverse situation. Wonderful.
Last, but not least, we had Grandma’s Best Day Out by Barbara Holdsworth, directed by Claire Eden. Two granny plays, they must have known I was coming. This is another family affair, in that the writer is the mother of Lisa Holdsworth, who’s already had too many mentions. She has taken up playwriting at the tender age of 85, which I suppose makes her a bit of a nepo baby in reverse.
Lottie, played by Jane Barrow, is the grandma in question, who is recovering from a stroke but adamant that she wants to go to her daughter’s wedding. One of her other daughters, Mary (Carolyn Eden) – she has seven children altogether – has called to pick her up and make sure the day goes well. As you can imagine there is a fair bit of reminiscing before they set off.
After the reception they arrive home and go through the parts of the event which could have been improved upon. ‘It’s a bit cold for salad.’ being the main one. The day, having taken its toll on Lottie, causes her to have an early night, especially as her friend, Alice, played by Cathy Breeze, is due to call the next morning.
The following day finds Lottie in her armchair awaiting the arrival of Alice. When she turns up there is a wonderful piece of banter between two old friends behaving like only Northern women of a certain age can. Kettle on, tea made and the piece of wedding cake from the day before quickly demolished right down to the last crumb by Alice after Lottie says she doesn’t want any. It was a joyous scene and fitting that Lottie should choose the moment, when Alice was shown out by Mary, to sit back and close her eyes for the last time.
I certainly hope that it isn’t another five years before the next Slung Low Shorts as it is a great showcase for local talent, both new and established.
Photographs by James A Mumby Photography
Tyke It To The Limit 