High School production an entertaining spy spoof

June 27th, 2013
[Reviewed by David Armstrong]

Opening night of Motueka High School's 2013 production, Jane Blond 006 was an entertaining but somewhat mixed bag of goods, some brilliant but some 'work ons' for the remaining three shows.

I won't tell the details of the story, which has been described in detail by other media, but basically it's a fun spoof of a James Bond tale involving the oafish team of the evil Nemesis and the equally clueless forces of British intelligence and their unpredictable Kiwi ace, Jane Blond.

Written by teacher Bashan King and thoroughly laced with references to Kiwi culture, local schools and shops, and poor old Marahau (with its correct and incorrect pronunciations), the plot and dialogue is at times very funny and clever and at others a little stodgy and confusing. But it does end with a rather clever and unexpected twist.

The plot details don't really matter to those attending who just want to be entertained. The action and pleasure is in the music, dancing and lighting, all of which is very good.

Highlights were numerous. The biggest show stoppers were Izaak Behringer and Will Garland as the camp, upper-class idiot spies 004 and 003. Their confident timing, diction (especially Izaac's Prince Charles accent) and physicality were outstanding, and they were helped by some very clever scripting.

Also captivating was Tika King, playing the super-evil but at times vulnerable and flawed Nemesis. She is a talented actress who can portray a range of emotions, voices and faces, and has a strong sense of comedic over-acting plus the all-important ability to speak directly with the audience and draw their reaction.

However, she also left overly long spaces between her sentences, so dialogue in most of the scenes she took part in was way too slow, leaving the audience wondering if someone had forgotten their lines or was waiting for something else to happen before continuing.

Let's get the bad bits out of the way first. My main criticism of much of the play is that the dialogue in many scenes was stilted, too slow and quite unnatural, which blunted some of the funny lines. It is hoped that as the actors become more relaxed and familiar with their work in remaining performances, the flow will be more natural.

Also in several of the scenes the secondary characters behind the main dialogue were stationary, again producing frozen moments, especially when dialogue was also gappy. A good exception was the first ensemble scene at spy headquarters, where the mad, straight-jacketed failed experiments and the busy scientists kept the background alive.

Another highlight in the acting department was Jane Blond herself, Stella Bogdanoff, who threw everything into her very physical part, including spectacular and difficult gymnastics hanging from the silk drapes. Her projection was appropriately manic, if sometimes hard to decipher, but like Tika she has enormous talent.

Another popular actor was Krishna Dammert, playing Dogsbody, who overcame early hesitancy and slowness to make a wonderful comedy character largely through the use of his eyes and body actions rather than words. And we mustn't forget Victoria Hart's lovely Parisian solo singing.

The production made excellent use of several modern technologies, including some well-produced screen video backdrops which drew audience approval. The chosen music was very effective, and though some of it was modern and heavy, it was never uncomfortable for older ears.

Passages where actors moved in the audience were used effectively, especially the opening arrival of the queen, leaving oldies wondering how to react to the playing of God save the Lady Herself. However, families with young children may want to stay away from the front aisle seats as the psychedelic madness dance scene may be rather scary close up for young eyes.

The production features lots of dance sequences and they were all excellent, none more so than the early fight scene where the dancers broke cleverly into simulated slow motion several times. All dance crews (there seemed to be two or three of them) showed great energy and audience engagement.

The use of wireless mikes enabled most speakers to be heard clearly, and Memorial Hall's new sound set-up was again used to great effect. The announcer apologised at the end of the show for technical glitches, but I noticed only a handful of them, mainly involving mikes not turned on quite in time. Don't apologise guys - we don't notice these things.

The lighting was also very effective and often enhanced the action; the sound and light crew led by Mark Wentworth deserves much praise. Also praiseworthy is the new heating system in the hall (again thanks to Mark), which made a very cosy environment on a very cold night.

The stage management team did well, too, with no noticeable gaps between scenes which often bedevil opening night performances.

If you're looking for a play with a strong (or even credible) and meaningful plot-line, then give this a miss. But if you're happy to sit back and enjoy a cabaret/musical with lots of great local jokes, talented dancing, and powerful sound and lighting effects then make sure you see Jane Blond 006 before its final night on Saturday.

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