![Getting into character, the haughty Joanna (Becky Lupton) with Garry Essendine's ever-cheerful butler, Fred (Lochlann O'Duibhir). Picture supplied Getting into character, the haughty Joanna (Becky Lupton) with Garry Essendine's ever-cheerful butler, Fred (Lochlann O'Duibhir). Picture supplied](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/HJKdXpzXdCqQNEEJgi9knT/6de50ab9-9d84-4513-aebd-3a57439c3ec5.JPG/r308_1072_2080_2823_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
On Friday, May 26 Spectrum Theatre Group returns to the stage, with Noel Coward's wonderful comedy Present Laughter.
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Set in London in the 1940s it's full of the elegance of a bygone era.
The story revolves around actor and matinee idol Garry Essendine who seems to attract women and a trail of hopeful actors and playwrights.
Garry is very much at the at the centre of his own universe, suave, hedonistic and too old, says his wife, to be having numerous affairs.
His line in harmless, infatuated debutantes is largely tolerated but playing closer to home is not.
Just before he escapes on tour to Africa the full extent of his misdemeanours is discovered and it's not only Garry who is caught up in the fall out.
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Award-winning director Amber Little said she came across Present Laughter a couple of years ago when she was revisiting Noel Coward's plays.
"What I liked was the strong female roles in it even though it was written in 1939," Amber said.
"I loved the female roles that Coward had surrounded the main character with."
"When he wrote it he (Coward) did it as a little bit of fun for him and his mates to have a bit of a laugh about because there is a little bit of him in it. It was a bit of a dig at them all," Amber said.
She said it was great to be staging a show again after two years and looked forward to seeing everyone support community theatre at its best.
It's classic Noel Coward with gorgeous costuming, sharp wit, cutting lines and comedy plus some fast-paced, in one door, out the other, scenes as everyone's misdemeanours collide just in time for the grand tour of Africa.
"There's a strong cast of local actors in this, some of whom theatre-goers will have seen before such as John Fraser who plays Garry Essendine, Jodie Stevens who plays his secretary, a new face in Coleen McCoy who is playing Garry's wife, Liz Essendine, two members of Theatre Onsett, Jamie Forbes and Becky Lupton plus Sam Roberts, Will Robertson, Belinda Rosenbaum, Lochlann O'Duibhir, Kym Hawthorne and Denise Dion.
Present Laughter is being performed at Bega Civic Centre on Friday, May 26, Saturday, May 27, Friday, June 2 and Saturday, June 3 at 7pm. There are matinees starting at 1pm on Saturday, May 27, Sunday, May 28 and Saturday, June 3.
A link to ticketing, where you are able to choose your own seats is on the Spectrum website www.spectrumtheatregroup.com.au/
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