Produced for a wonderful cause, the Sale & Altrincham Musical Theatre group put on four episodes from the beloved TV show The Vicar of Dibley in aid of Comic Relief, and what a comic relief it was! Altrincham Little Theatre was filled with laughter as the audience watched these keen and considerate actors bring these fabulous characters back to life for our entertainment. To hear that infamous arrangement of “The Lord is my Shepherd” was to be truly transported into our first episode, in which Dibley’s current vicar has become past, and they are on the lookout for a new child of God.
The moment our Jim, played by David Hunt, stuttered his way through a “n-n-n-no-no-no-no, yes” the hall erupted with laughter at the spot-on recreation. However, one problem with bringing a sitcom to the stage is the lack of a laugh track, which generally encourages the spectator to giggle along. A script such as The Vicar of Dibley is often structured with many line breaks set aside, specifically for laughter, and for this reason can often seem stilted. However, when Janice Rendel entered the stage as Geraldine, any uncomfortable silences were filled with genuine laughter at the apparent appearance of Dawn French herself!
Tonight we were treated to four episodes from the golden
sitcom, The Arrival, The Easter Bunny, Engagement, and Love and
Marriage, with Alice and Hugo’s wedding revisited in exquisite detail! To
re-examine these cherished scripts live was to find the occasional fault with
them unfortunately, but the actors created such a lovely atmosphere that any
slight pot-holes were neatly avoided. A wonderful night’s entertainment, and
all to raise money for a great cause. God’s work indeed!