MURDER IN COMPANY

performed at Cumbernauld Town Hall, May 1975

PHILIP STEPHENS	Ron Paterson	RONNIE MEADOWS	Harry Glass
PHOEBE KERSHAW	Margaret McKinnon	TED SMITH	Jim Clark
PATRICIA ROBINS	Christine Cullingford	ALLAN WILSON	Billy Young
MARGARET STEPHENS	Betty Naismith	DORIS STEWART	Carol Finlay

Last week the Apex Players presented the three-act mystery play "Murder in Company" in the Town Hall. This play, written by Philip King and John Boland, provided Cumbernauld's theatre-goers with an unusual and entertaining evening. On arriving at the theatre we found open curtains and an almost bare stage. There were more surprises in store when the play commenced and some of the characters passed through the audience on their way to the stage.

Bewildering to begin with, the audience soon realised what was happening and enjoyed being part of the proceedings.

The scene was a church hall in a small town where the local amateur dramatic society held their rehearsals - hence producer Jim Haldane's idea of presenting the play in the manner described.

This well-written play was a winner all the way. It provided moments of comedy - the antics of the players during rehearsals - and of suspense, when the church hall caretaker is electrocuted. As most of the cast have reasons for wishing the unsavoury caretaker out of the way, the audience are left trying to solve the mystery of who the murderer, or murderers, might be. It was evident during the second interval of the play that the patrons were trying to do just that!

As the scenery consists of only chairs and tables, no criticism is necessary. The lighting and sound effects, too, were minimal but I should like to comment on the make-up - excellent - and the dress of the characters. In the past, I have criticised the Apex for lack of costume colour in certain plays, but in "Murder in Company" I was pleased to note the improvement in this direction, especially among the ladies.

The players used the stage to advantage, although I suspect that the audience at one side of the hall may have had difficulties in seeing some of the exits and entrances on stage right, their view being obscured by one of the side curtains.

The actors all did their parts justice. It was a very strong cast anchored by those extremely experienced campaigners Ron Paterson and Harry Glass. Ron, as Philip Stephens, the producer with marital problems gave yet another sterling performance. Bad temper and frustration were played to perfection although I did feel that this part contained too much bad language for a family show. Ron with his shouting and swearing, reminded me of Alf Garnett. Nevertheless, this was another first-class piece of acting from him.

Harry Glass, as Ronnie Meadows, the stage manager, provided a lot of comedy relief in the play. As "dear old Ronnie", the ladies' man, who is "fun to be with", Ronnie turns out to be, in fact, a woman-hater, the notorious growler, and surprise, surprise, the murderer. Harry's voice, actions and reactions were, as ever, immaculate and a model for any aspiring young actor.

Margaret McKinnon, as Phoebe Kershaw, the veteran trouper of the Drama Group, also gave her usual polished performance. The "old stager" might have been made to look a bit older but, this apart, she portrayed Phoebe well and brought many laughs from the audience, especially with the bit of mime she had to do in Act 2.

Jim Clark, as the obnoxious caretaker Ted Smith gave, in my opinion, his best-ever performance. He was absolutely right for the part - the real villain of the piece. As the sneaky blackmailer in a boiler suit he had everyone, cast and audience, hating him - great stuff Jim. Just one little complaint though, that the language in this part too was a bit strong.

In her second and biggest part for the Apex Players, Chris Cullingford, as Patricia Robins was the perfect young, emotional girl. She looked terrific on stage and it was hard to believe her relative inexperience, so impressive was her acting. In her hysterical scene on finding the caretaker's body, she could not be faulted. What a "find" for the Apex. Where have they been hiding her?

Allan Wilson, the young handsome member of the dramatic society in love with the producer's wife was played by the very enthusiastic Billy Young. Billy certainly looked the part and was at his best when his emotions were aroused. When he learns what to do and how to stand when acting normal conversation, he'll be a top-notcher.

Betty Naismith was Margaret Stephens, the producer's wife and young Allan's girlfriend. Betty is a natural for this type of role and no bother giving it everything it needed. Betty's looks and dress were just perfect. No wonder Allan fancied her. I should, however, like to see Betty in a more demanding rol in the next production.

Lat, but not least, of the characters of "Murder in Company" is Carol Finlay, as Doris Stewart, the girl attacked by the prowler. Doris is described a a "tough nut", and Carol manages to show this hardness while retaining her feminine charm. Carol gives the impression of complete control on stage and gives a most natural performance.

This was an excellent play performed by competent actors and expertly produced by Jim Haldane. His ideas came over well as the audience will testify. A final vote of thanks must go to Brian Gillespie, Nan Haldane and Bert Haldane, who helped behind the scenes. The Apex Players must surely now consider entering festivals to make their name known throughout the country. With this array of talent at their command, success would be inevitable