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 I scheme about, I dream about and I've been known to scream about '
that certain thing called The Boyfriend! And that is exactly what I was
doing when I left the Kenton theatre last Thursday after watching a
production of Sandy Wilson's The Boyfriend, performed by that talented
bunch in Henley Amateur Operatic and Dramatic Society. I was supposed
to attend the ever-popular Sunday matinee but got my dates wrong!
However, judging by the audience, the word about how good the show was
had got about as I was lucky to get a seat.
The Boyfriend was originally written in 1952 as a pastiche of musical
shows of the 1920's and only lasted an hour and a half. But when author
Sandy Wilson realised he had a hit on his hands, he expanded it to a
full length show and it has been delighting audiences since 1954.
The story is the simplest ' and probably the silliest as the action
takes place over the course of one day and culminates in the return of
the prodigal son, the reunion of long lost lovers and no less than five
proposals of marriage! It revolves around Polly Browne, the original
"poor little rich girl", played by Helen Eastwood, with a divine voice,
and her school chums, Maisie, the incorrigible flirt, played by
Samantha Horsfield, (and at last a sexy Maisie, so we believe that all
the boys are in love with her!) Dulcie, played by the delightful Emma
Powell, Fay, played by the elegant Ruth Jones and deliciously dippy
Nancy played to perfection by Daisy O'Halloran. These girls were
obviously having a great time together and were so together as a cast,
I instantly believed in them all. (Silly me!) The girls are attending
The Villa Caprice, a finishing school in the South of France run by
Madame Dubonnet, the reformed good time girl who has buried her
seething passion under an austere black skirt and up to the neck white
blouse, but is secretly still dedicated to having a good time. This
character was played faultlessly by Julie Huntington and for me, was
the definitive Madame Dubonnet. Mme D's love interest, Percival Browne
was played with suitable stiff upper lip by Gareth Saunders and again I
believed in these two characters at once, he being the perfect foil to
her advances.
Then ' along comes 'The Boyfriend' and what a delightful character he
was. So obviously  different from the brash French jeune hommes. Edward
Henderson playing Tony, captured the hearts of the audience as well as
Polly, with his gentle manner and balletic skills. It was a shame he
was not allowed to let rip with his tap dancing as I would have loved
to have seen more.
It is a marvel to me that even with the casting difficulties that this
show has encountered ' the usual story of no young men, that the love
interests for the girls ' three of whom were late-comers to the show,
all fitted in seamlessly, so they must have worked very hard indeed,
all had great French accents, which was countered excellently by the
brash Bobby Van Husen, played by John Ralls, with his faultless
American accent. Congratulations to David Holmes, Kevin Goodfellow,
Pete Bridekirk and Tom O'Halloran.
However, there is always someone who steals the show, and for me it was
the licentious Lord Brockhurst, played with great intent by Basil
Evans. It is his first time in the South of France, rather than Bognore
and let loose with all the young ladies was just too much for him. His
antics at trying to ditch his battleaxe wife Hilda, played terrifyingly
by Annette Bowden were hilarious! His duet 'Never too late to Fall in
Love' with Dulcie still makes me giggle even now. Other highlights of
the show were the tango performed by Pepe, and Lolita ' who also
doubled as Maisie and Marcel and the show-stopping 'Poor Little
Pierette', a difficult duet executed to perfection by Mdme D and Polly,
with the voices blending and soaring perfectly.
The costumes were excellent especially the wonderful array of fancy
dress at the Carnival Ball. The music and choreography were top notch,
so congratulations to Marc Pizer the Musical Director and David
Parsonson for the choreography, but full marks have to go to director
Raymond Burton, who squeezed every ounce of humour out of very little
dialogue. Well done, HAODS, for once more putting on a show to be proud
of.
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