NEVER TOO MANY !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Any number of plays are welcome,and so it was great to have ACTORS (Amateur Creative Talents on Repertory Shows) of Lucknow,present their second production,ONE TOO MANY,last week.I somehow managed to make it,on the last day of the show,and was pleasantly surprised to see,the hall,almost two thirds full,on the last day,in spite of it being a week day,and one of the coldest evenings of this prolonged winter.This just went to show the love of Lucknowites for drama and their appreciation for productions of ACTORS.
ONE TWO MANY,was a farcical,two act comedy,about the romantic flings of Grieg.Greig,a married man,was a incorrigible glad-eye,and wouldn’t miss a single opportunity to cuddle up with young girls.His compulsive addiction to extramarital sexcapades,didn’t even stop him,from moving in the house next to his own,with a girl,Judy,half his age,with a promise to marry her after the live -in pre honey-moon phase.His wife Maig meets Judy,and to save his skin,Grieg,ropes in his dear friend Peter,to take his place,as Maigs husband,in his house,in front of Judy.The scenario is further complicated by the house keeper,Mrs Puff,Judy’s father,Peters ex girlfriend Rose and Magi’s one evening friend,Adam.The plot is unconvincingly complicated,while each ,specially Peter,tries to save his skin,but the comedy,keeps the story rolling,to en,even disclosing that Peter had a soft corner for Maig.
The story would have given a feeling of de-ja-vue to all those who had seen the earlier production of ACTORS,Unfaithfully Yours,which too revolved around extramarital affairs.Since there was no mention of the writer of the play,I presume,it has been scripted by the team themselves,and if it so,then its another shining feather in the hat of ACTORS.Though the story was predictable,the spontaneity,wittiness and meticulous coordination kept the interest sustained till the end.The stage,courtesy,Raj Furnishers,was tastefully done and the costumes were realistic.Wish there was some music thrown in,which would have covered the silence on the stage,when various characters moved in and out of the four doors of the room,innumerable times.
Carlyle McFarland,the veteran stage person from the city ,was perfect as always,as Smith.But it was Vinamra Agarwal,who surprised me,with his excellent acting,as Peter,more so,since it was probably his debut act.Saurabh Sarkar as Mr Burns,was impressive and convincing,and so was Varun Egbert,as Adam,though ,in spite of his goaty beard,he looked young for the role.Meera Talwar,Saumaya Misra,Priti Chawla and Tazneen Hussain,as Meg,Judy,Mrs. Puff and Rose,did justice to their roles,more so considering the fact that most of them were amateur artists.Faisal Hussain was missed on stage,but displayed his directional talents superbly.
Overall One Too Many,was a great entertainer and we look forward to more productions from ACTORS and the team of Faisal and Carlyle
Col and Prof Sanjay Kapoor