Hebden Bridge Little Theatre’s first play of the 2020 Season is Entertaining Angels, by Richard Everett, from Monday 24 – Saturday 29 February.
Grace has been a dutiful clergyman’s wife for forty years. Now, with the death of her husband, she is preparing to relinquish the family home to a new, female vicar.
But the arrival of her estranged missionary sister, Ruth, means Grace has to confront long hidden secrets, with potentially devastating effects.
Entertaining Angels is a very funny, grown-up comedy, about marriage, love, sex and faith. Penelope Keith, who played Grace during the play’s opening run in 2009, received glowing reviews for making the most of the character’s sardonic humour. Gilly Walker hopes to bring the same comic timing to the part.
The other characters contribute equally to the comedy. They all have interesting character flaws, and each faces a moral dilemma. The brilliance of the play means all this is told with a lightness and skill that keeps the audience engrossed and amused, whilst surprises keep coming till the very end!
Sue Morris, returns to direct at the Little Theatre for the first time since The Importance of Being Earnest, in 2005. She has assembled an accomplished cast:
Gilly Walker plays Grace; Rachel Peter is her daughter, Jo; Rachel Doyle-Richards takes the part of Sarah, the vicar; Hannah Stow is Ruth, the prodigal sister; and Neil Ashford plays Bardolph, Grace’s husband.
Neil is the sole newcomer to the Little Theatre, amongst the cast. He returns to theatrical circles after a period of time which has been dominated by work and cycling. Neil’s previous theatrical experience is mainly in Panto and Farce, in a number of amateur dramatic societies during a long and distinguished Army career. His big screen debut, as a background artist in Kenneth Branagh’s Magic Flute, earned no reviews and so Neil is all but unknown. Neil is excited about playing Bardy in Entertaining Angels, and what his future prospects might be at the Little Theatre.
Entertaining Angels will be performed from Monday to Saturday, 24-29 February, at 7.30pm. Get your tickets now, online at https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/hebdentheatre, or in person, at Innovation, Hebden Bridge.
Rehearsal photos by Bruce Cutts.
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