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  The Cicala Players in: Who Lies
There by Philip Johnson
Staged: 20-21 March 1950 at The
Fortune Theatre Russell Street London
Since 1947 the Cicala Players have performed a total
of six plays, spread across several different London theatre venues. Their
1950 production of “Who Lies There” is staged at The Fortune Theatre in
Russell Street, and it will be at this particular venue that our players will
eventually settle, and put on many of their 1960s productions. Described in
Martins Bank’s Magazine as “probably the most technically flawless all-round
bit of acting”, Who Lies There seems – on
the face of it – to have gone down well. Appearances can, however, be
deceptive, and a little later in the same review, we read the somewhat
startling comment: “the scene where he demonstrates his ability to
strangle Francie was the one poor spot”
(!) Perhaps a strangulation scene is best not botched? It appears to have been made more unconvincing
by the acting of the person being strangled!
These reviews are always fascinating, often written by the Editor of
Martins Bank Magazine, Alec R Ellis, they say as much about him personally –
likes, dislikes, having a point of view about almost everything – as they do
about the people who write, perform in, or work behind the scenes in each
play. One obsession seems to be the percieved differences between the people
of the North of England and the South – you will find the word LANCASHIRE
mentioned no fewer than SIX
times in the article below…
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Left to right:—Kenneth
Carlisle, John Evans, Renee Fortier, Helena Currie, Arthur Odell, Joan
Cowell, Stella Brown, Mary Howse and John Howard
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 Of the seven post-war
shows staged by the Cicala Players the performance of Philip Johnson’s “Who
Lies There” at the Fortune Theatre on March 20th and 21st was probably the
most technically flawless all-round bit of acting. True, the producer, G.
Craig Batey, was lucky in that his two Lancashire character parts were
taken by Lancashire-born people and one or two of the other actors are now
amateurs of some experience, but a body-in-the-cellar type of play has to
be well done if the natural tendency of the audience not to take the matter
seriously is to be converted into genuine suspense. Well, the suspense was
there; we all felt it, and the person on whom fell the principal burden of
sustaining it was Mary Howse as Francie. She was really first-class, while
her portrayal of the week-old bride was most appealing. She had our
sympathy from the outset, our affection before she had been on the stage
ten minutes, and our anxiety for her safety throughout. Very well done
indeed!
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In a
well-acted show it is difficult to place people in order of merit, as
opinions vary, but our own second choice would be Arthur Odell's portrayal
of Mr. Meakin. Any time Felix Aylmer requires an understudy he might do
worse than come to the Cicala Players! The portrayal was masterly—casting
just the right amount of doubt in the minds of the audience as to his
apparent innocence. Stella Brown as Mrs. Butterworth, the Lancashire
housewife, was batting on the home ground, which is not to detract from her
performance. It was a Stella never before seen by a Cicala Players audience
and, being Lancashire-born ourselves, we have to be careful about being too
lyrical lest we be accused of bias. But, as usual, she did her job well and
perhaps we may be excused if we say we think it was the best performance
she has ever given us. Renee Forder as the somewhat volatile singer
achieved another success. She brings a regal quality to a part such as this
and invariably succeeds in commanding the stage whenever she appears. It
was rather tantalising that the part only required the use of her singing
voice for a few moments off stage. John Evans as the Professor, the real
murderer, threw some unintentional dust in the eyes of his audience by his
naturally quiet manner and self-effacing characteristics. It might have
been fairer to have aroused some slight doubt, some little apprehension, in
the mind of Francie, who was prepared to be frightened of anybody, a little
earlier than the inevitable revelation. But he was sinister enough when once
his true character was revealed. We thought, however, that the scene where
he demonstrates his ability to strangle Francie was the one poor spot in
both their performances.
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Joan Cowell, Mary Howse and John Howard
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Stella Brown,
Kenneth Carlisle and Helena Currie
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She forsook
the character by not showing terror at the sinister movements going on
behind her and his decision not to “do” her after all wasn’t very
convincing. But this is a minor criticism set down because no performance
is perfect and to ignore all criticism and make everything a matter of
honey and soft words is to present a one-sided picture.
John Howard as
George, the newly-married husband, gave a demonstration of patience and
understanding, in which his infatuation for his charming wife suitably
overcame his exasperation at her feminine fears and fancies, which were at
once a lesson to all newly-married men and a reminder to some of us
old-stagers of our own springtime. Joan Cowell as Mrs. ream, the mother of
the newly-weds, had the difficult task of holding the stage at the
beginning and bringing the play to life.
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The job was in
safe hands and all through the play she added the right touches at the
right time to maintain the suspense. Kenneth Carlisle as Alec, the
not-unintelligent but somewhat blundering policeman with a hunch, put
across the rather too traditional idea of “ Lancashire-born,
Lancashire-bred, strong in the arm and thick in the head.” It went down
well with the Southerners, however! Helena Currie as Mrs. Dubinski, brought
a refreshing breath of sophistication to the very Victorian atmosphere. She
is developing into an amateur of considerable promise and has come a long
way since her last appearance in 1947. Altogether a very fine effort, but
we were sorry to learn that there were a number of empty seats on both
nights and it appears that Monday and Tuesday are not likely to command the
same support as Friday and Saturday. Also, the night is an expensive one
for a Londoner and his wife, and money is tighter.
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John Howard,
Mary Howse, Stella Brown, Kenneth Carlisle, Joan Cowell,
Arthur Odell,
Renee Forder and John Evans
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