{"id":2357,"date":"2019-04-25T13:40:08","date_gmt":"2019-04-25T12:40:08","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.madf.im\/?page_id=2357"},"modified":"2019-04-25T13:40:08","modified_gmt":"2019-04-25T12:40:08","slug":"bejou-productions-with-benefactors-by-michael-fryan","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/madf.im\/?page_id=2357","title":{"rendered":"Bejou Productions with Benefactors by Michael Fryan"},"content":{"rendered":"

Bejou Productions with\u00a0Benefactors<\/em>
\nby Michael Fryan<\/strong><\/p>\n

Benefactors \u2013 a thought-provoking tale of sub-urban domestic upheaval\u2026<\/u><\/strong>
\nThe fourth night of the Easter Festival of Plays brought some classic modern drama to the Gaiety Theatre with\u00a0Benefactors<\/em>\u00a0presented by Bejou Productions from Westcliff on Sea. The performance was given in memory of Bejou Productions\u2019 co-founder John White \u2013 a long-standing supporter of the Easter Festival \u2013 who sadly passed away in December 2018.<\/p>\n

Benefactors<\/em>\u00a0by Michael Frayn, written in 1984, is set in late 1960s London and concerns an idealistic architect David and his wife Jane, and their relationship(s) with their less-than-idealistic friends Colin and wife Sheila. The play focuses \u2013 at least superficially \u2013 on David\u2019s plan to build two skyscrapers and the reactions of everybody around him, in the house and out, to his plans. However, as is the case with most of Frayn\u2019s work, the meaning behind the action is anything but straight-forward. The subtext of the plot touches on the complexity of human relationships, the price of political and psychological change, and ends with David questioning his dreams for building a \u2018better\u2019 world and a shattered marriage for one of the couples.
\nThe set was representative with imaginative use of music and lighting to set the tone. The action moved along at a good pace and each character was clearly identifiable. Adjudicator Jill Colby felt that the pace was even, although this was hindered by uncertainty of lines, and greater overlapping of scenes would have assisted in the movement of the action.<\/p>\n

Each of the four actors gave strong performances and were praised by the adjudicator. David Streames \u2013 playing David (and who directed the production) \u2013 brought out the aloofness of his character whose focus on his project seems all-consuming. Joanna Mitchell \u2013 in the part of David\u2019s wife Jane \u2013 was imaginative in her presentation and maintained the middle-class attitude throughout. Jacqui Schon \u2013 in the role of Shiela \u2013 played her part with sensitivity and had a good connection with the audience. Robb Stow \u2013 as Colin \u2013 was convincing in what is a purposefully unlikable and cynical character.<\/p>\n

Jill Colby felt the director brought out the sense of domesticity and that there were moments when the play really shone. She also commented on the vocal energy which was brought by those involved to the production.
\nOverall, Bejou Productions presented a thought-provoking, witty-yet-dark performance of one of Michael Frayn\u2019s lesser known plays. This cautionary tale of helping others was handled well and the final scene was particularly effective, leaving many in the audience with a real sense of reflection.<\/p>\n

\u00a0
\n\u00a0<\/p>\n

Jill Colby once again delivered an insightful\u00a0<\/strong>adjudication<\/strong><\/span>\u00a0which helped our understanding of the play<\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Bejou Productions with\u00a0Benefactors by Michael Fryan Benefactors \u2013 a thought-provoking tale of sub-urban domestic upheaval\u2026 The fourth night of the Easter Festival of Plays brought some classic modern drama to the Gaiety Theatre with\u00a0Benefactors\u00a0presented by Bejou Productions from Westcliff on Sea. The performance was given in memory of Bejou Productions\u2019 co-founder John White \u2013 a … Continue reading Bejou Productions with Benefactors by Michael Fryan<\/span> →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":2359,"parent":2326,"menu_order":4,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-2357","page","type-page","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/madf.im\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2357","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/madf.im\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/madf.im\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/madf.im\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/madf.im\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2357"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/madf.im\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2357\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2358,"href":"https:\/\/madf.im\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2357\/revisions\/2358"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/madf.im\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2326"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/madf.im\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/2359"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/madf.im\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2357"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}