Autumn production 2014

Building Bridges

By Colin Calvert

Directed by Andrew Saalmans

Playing at the Kelsick Centre for 5 nights from Tuesday 28th Oct to Saturday 1st November

Bar opens at 7.00pm. Main Hall doors open at 7.30pm

Review by Alan & Jan Enfield

Loved the authentic set. Such a shame about the newt.... Almost word perfect this year! Well done once again Ambleside Players. We look forward to next year's comedy with eager anticipation.

Video From the show:

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An hilarious environmental comedy with more twists and turns than Holmes and Poirot put together. It's nerdy Clive's first time with The Ferrets - a group of environmental volunteers - and today they're building a boardwalk over some boggy ground. What will he make of officious Bob, strident Beryl and ASBO Mandy? And what's so special about Molly's culinary offerings?

Online tickets now available

Review, “Building Bridges” by Jane Renouf - Published in the Westmorland Gazette 20th Nov 2014

Ambleside Players’ recent production, “Building Bridges” by Colin Calvert, is about volunteers caring for the landscape. However, any local relevance or similarities with the real thing are hopefully non-existent, as a dysfunctional, ill-assorted group of environmental volunteers, the Ferrets, are tasked with constructing a boardwalk over a boggy swamp renowned for its ability to swallow up the unwary. In charge is earnest and humourless Tricia, (Tricia Donson), uncomfortably plausible as the Council supervisor, pedantically issuing ridiculous health and safety warnings and banging on about hard hats and boots with steel toecaps. Instead of building bridges, the Ferrets spend more time loathing one another, led by offensive and outspoken ex-police Inspector Bob, robustly played by Andrew Saalmans. However, not all the group are selfless volunteers - lairy, loud-mouthed sexual predator Mandy, (gutsy acting by Esther Potts), is the proud possessor of an ASBO, repaying society for assorted assaults with a spot of hard labour. Into this mix wanders naive and touchingly innocent out-of-work draughtsman Clive, (Steve Donson). Middle-aged Clive may have led a very sheltered life at home with his mum but his obsessive knowledge of boardwalk stress factors has its uses as the bridge wobbles into shape. Dominating the Ferrets are bossy Beryl and her formidably creepy companion Molly (wickedly played by Christine Wright and Moira Rowlinson) who hate the objectionable Bob. The nefarious duo quietly dispense with people they dislike, thanks to Molly’s expert knowledge of garden poisons. Bob’s greed for her home-made Victoria sponge topped by a toxic cherry leads to his untimely demise, and no prizes as to where the body is buried as the swamp starts to rumble with gaseous gurgles. Special mention for dog-walker Judith Shingler with Leila, and Barry the Bridge Builder (Porter), a dab hand with a Black & Decker.

Anything the play may have lacked in laugh-out-loud lines was more than made up for by quality acting and skilled comic characterisation by a hard-working cast.

Photo's from Production

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