Review: Curtains at St Mary’s Creative Space

Words: Angela Ferguson

Photos: Stephen Cain Photography

It’s an autumnal kinda summer’s evening when I set foot inside the welcoming warmth of the Chester gem that is St Mary’s Creative Space.

It’s also a school night, when I’m usually holed up at home with the prospect of a good book or a bit of radio or telly to entertain me.

But, oh, how glad I am that I have made the effort to get out the house to see the latest offering from Chester’s AgainstTHEGRAIN theatre company.

St Mary’s Creative Space provides the perfect intimate and suitably gothic space in which to park the day-to-day and escape to another world, courtesy of this talented cast and crew.

There’s a warm welcome from the front of house team and after grabbing a drink I take my seat for the performance.

Not ones to shy away from staging thought-provoking and challenging productions, ‘Curtains’ takes a wry look at the ups and downs of being an actor.

We get to go through the stage door and behind the scenes of the life of a jobbing actor, warts and all.

It’s a bittersweet play, looking at the hopes and dreams of close friends, Dominic (Stuart Evans) and Percival (Mark Newman).

“What doesn’t kill us makes us stronger,” counsels a weary Dom, unsure his dream of breaking into TV will ever come off.

This production, slickly directed by AgainstTHEGRAIN’s Marian Newman, takes us from that first meeting to the present day, when the friends are appearing in an ‘innovative’ production of Hamlet.

We first meet Dom and Percival amidst the adrenalin-fuelled surroundings of an audition, where they face the intimidating demands of sniffy director Lance (Malcolm Gledhill).

There are jangled nerves aplenty, along with a few outrageous moments and wonderfully acerbic observations.

We see a host of actors of different ages and at various stages in their career, all thrown together in a theatre with uber confident director Terri (Laura Smith).

Terri has some, ahem, interesting ideas when it comes to warm up exercises.

You’ll never look at a Sainsbury’s carrier bag in the same way, trust me.

This fast-paced production takes us through rehearsals and previews all the way through to press night, before whizzing us all the way back in time to that first fateful audition.

The writing and the energetic performances keep us audience members on our toes. We never quite know what Dom and Percival and friends will get up to next.

Along the way, we meet seasoned actors such as Angela (Fiona Wheatcroft) and Richard (Ray Bengree), who provide no end of pithy comments and sage advice for their fellow thespians.

And we also get to know theatre newbies, stage crew member-turned actor, Neil (Craig Woodcock) and Wes (Thomas Parry), who has a knack for rubbing company members up the wrong way with his bragging about being up for a plum role in a Netflix drama.

Amidst it all, we get well and truly behind the mask of these colleagues and friends, learning some of their innermost thoughts and desires, along with their foibles and regrets. Much of it is shared over endless cups of dressing room coffee, with the occasional invitation to regroup outside their theatrical cocoon for a beverage or two.

It’s a witty and moving examination of what it means to be human, and not just a jobbing actor. And for anyone who has ever had a dream – or is still holding on to that dream – it should resonate deeply.

What makes this all the more gripping is that it has been written by AgainstTHEGRAIN members Stuart Evans and Mark Newman. They must have many a tale to tell from their time in the industry.

There are plenty of laugh out loud moments, with some superb facial expressions and physical comedy at play.

Equally, there are some poignant moments as we are given various pieces of the jigsaw to enable us to see the fragile person behind the confident mask of an actor on stage.

There’s also a superb soundtrack, adding an extra frisson of escapism and theatricality to proceedings.

AgainstTHEGRAIN have come up with another unique and engaging production that will pull on your heartstrings and give your laughter muscles a thorough workout.

The wisdom at play, so gently and powerfully delivered by the cast, will also stay with you long after the curtain comes down on this production.

‘Curtains’ runs until Friday 5 July, with no show on Thursday 4 July due to the small matter of a General Election (!). Do catch it if you can.

We give ‘Curtains’ a scene-stealing five stars.

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