The Play Produced

BEYOND REASONABLE

DOUBT

by Jeffrey Archer

Michael Russell discusses his produClion f(J7 Heald Green Thealre Club \X<'henever a popular play is released for production by amateurs, casting committees up and down the country avidly devour the script in the hope that their society will have the facilities to stage it before their 'rivals'. Whilst not making any claims that Heald Green Theatre Oub were the first amateurs to produce this courtroom drama, we opened on 19th January, less than three weeks after the 'starting pistol' had been fired . PLOT & CASTING The first act takes us to the Old Bailey, where Sir David Metcalfe, distinguished Chairman of the Bar Council, is conducting the most important defence of his career- his own. He is accused of the wilful murder of his tenninally ill wife, and finds himself locked in legal combat with his old rival, Anthony Blair-Booth Q.c., prosecuting council. The tense and gripping courtroom scene ends just as we are about to hear the Jury's verdict. Act Two takes us back in time to the fateful night of Lady Metcalfe's death and before, and naturally the play ends with a surprising twist. The first consideration in casting this play is the ability of the society to find eleven men! Certainly some of these parts are not lengthy roles, one or two are virtually non­speaking, but the 'bodies' have to be found! Secondly, the parts of Sir David Metcalfe and Anthony Blair-Booth must be played b y actors experienced enough to handle the lengthy speeches entrusted to them. Sir David must also be able to produce a realistic Welsh accent and in Act Two he and Lady i'v1etcalfe have lengthy scenes to­gether which demand not only high acting standards, but a sympathy and understanding between the players. Once the society has decided that it .::an caSt the play, it must then amsider the complexities of the two

sets involved. More on this point in a moment. REHEARSALS In directing this play, I realised that the rehearsal period straddled the Festive Season, and there was no possibility that I would have a full cast at rehearsals until a short time before opening night. However this does not really present a problem, as, initially at least, productive rehearsals can be achieved with only a few players. What is essential is that Sir David is available for the majority of rehearsals, with either Anthony Blair-Booth or Lady Metcalfe. Act one, being set in a Courtroom, is understandably static, and therefore the timing of the dialogue is vital. The questioning and cross­examination of ~imesses is a matter of cut - and thrust, culminating in the verbal ballie between Sir David and Blair-Booth at the end of the Act. The early rehearsals of Act One

showed the pla y's dramatic qualities, but it was only in the last week that this part of the play came to life, with all the smaller parts taking their places. lbis, I feel, is the most exciting part of directing, as the fmal touches to the set, the lighting effects, the addition of music, all contribute to giving the finished production what was envisaged on first reading the play. Act Two sees a variety of mood. The first two scenes create the relaxed atmosphere of the diIUler party, whilst the audience are nevertheless aware of Lady Metcalfe ' s ill health, the housekeeper's dislike of Sir David, and Sir David's first telephone conversation with his stockbroker. The special relationship between Sir David and Lady Metcalfe is evident throughou t this act, but the 'playacting' between them is fully displayed in the third scene, punctuated by Sir David's loss of temper with his housekeeper, Mrs.

Rogers, and, again With

stockbroker. This play is not what I woul 'typical thriller' , and although·

~

is some tension in scene four ­a short scene - it ends with ~ that had our audiences feelir.~ their handkershiefs. There were no major problelJl' the moves in this Act, in thi had Sir David moving most. others sitting. Considerable was spent in discussing the c in mood with the principal p and their strong perfonnan.:.. reflected the hard work they p t All the scenes in this act are ' joim'_ by taped dialogue first heard in c: Court Room, but the fifth s.: . takes place after the trial. No m . can be said here, I do not wish : reveal the denouement. SCENERY Looking at the plan at the back the script would be sufficient deter many societies frorr presenting this play, indeed m

Sec f or the Central Cn·minal Court (The Old Bailey)

Set f or the home of Sir David & L ady Metcalf

P."GE 14 Amaceur S rage M arch 1991

•

Changing the set

than one-set can often be sufficient reason nor to stage a production. Obviously, the sets required some simplication, but nevertheless difficulties ensued. To change the sets in the minimtun of time, the stage team decided mat the Judge's and Barrister's benches , and wimess box, be built on rostra, which in tum were on "trucks", so that at the end of Act One they could be turned and pushed into their new positions. At the intitial production meeting, I quickly learned that my own version of how the sets should look would bear no resemblance to the finished article, as the positioning of doors etc in Act Two would be dependent totally on the availability of space after the trucks had been accommodated in their different surroundings. The stage at Heald Green is not particularly large, although I have seen many smaller. The first consideration was to ensure all actors could be seen despite the confmed space. The Clerk to the Court and Stenographer were seated in the 'well ' of the court, and as the Judge was, of necessity in our case, centre stage, he had to be raised sufficiently to be clearly visible. The Q.C's benches and the dock were on the same side of the stage which, initially gave me masking 'nightmares', but by angling the rostrum on which both dock and benches were built, and by raising the dock itself, this problem was overcome. LIGHTING Many problems were posed for our lighting department, as the court scene of Act One had many of the actors placed close to light coloured walls, and required illuminating up to the supposed ceiling height. It was difficult to attain even distribution of light without throwing terrible border-cloth shadows. The Q.C's bench, the Dock, the Judge and the Wimess Box all required extra attention, and three spot-lights were used for the effect at the end of Act One. Firstly, the Judge concludes his summing up in spotligh!, all other lights having faded to black-out, and moments later there are spots on the clerk and the defendant as the clerk asks the foreman of the jury for the verdict. The lounge scene of Act Two would pose no particular problems if one could afford the luxury of a torally

.~/Ilateur Stage March 1991

A scene from ACl II

The final call

independent set of lamps, but in our case, it was often found that the ideal position for a lamp was already occupied on the bar, or else would cast a huge shadow of another lamp nearby. Thus some lamps had to be used for both sets. When we were forced to make an adjustment of such a lamp, it was

with great apprehension - not knowing what damage had been done to the lighting of the other set until the sets were changed. The manner in which lighting was used proved at certain parts to be particularly effective. I have mentioned the spots in Act One, but the fading of lights at the end of

The Play Produced

some scenes in Act Two, prior to the 'voice-overs' can add considerably to the emotion in the dialogue. I suppose I could be accused of 'milking' at the end of scene 4, as the lights began to fade early in Sir David's speech, except for a spot over the settee, as Sir David delivered his speech to his dying wife.

COSTUMES In presenting any production a society must consider cost, and in addition to the cost of constructing the courtroom, the hire of wigs and robes adds to the expense. For the 'dinner-party' scenes in Act Two, I had the men in dinner­jackets - visually effective - and only costly if 'the relevant actors do not possess their own suits, or there are none in the wardrobe department. The play takes place in the present, so costumes are otherwise straightforward.

SOUND Mahler's 5th Symphony was used, strong and forceCul for the dramatic opening, softer music between the scenes in Act Two. Something I do not nonnally introduce is music coming in behind the actors, but on this occasion just a hint lent dramatic effect.

PROPERTIES I am sure all amateur societies possess two bottles of Mouton Rothschild 1961! A little more expensive than the bottle you may choose to go with your Saturday evening meal. The next best thing is to copy the label if you ha ve an artist in your midst. There was one point I found somewhat annoying, although I must confess my eyesight is not what it was. Sir David, when cross­examining Mrs. Rogers, shows her three bottles, each con raining a different colour of pill. A television audience would grasp the point immediately, but sitting at the back of the Theatre, can the audience see the bottles, never mind the colour of the pills!

SUMMARY This play has much to commend it, strong drama in Act One, both laughter and tears in Act Two, and in the case of Heald Green Theatre Club it played to packed houses each night of its week-long run. The response of the audience made the effort involved most worthwhile.

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