Review: New Plymouth Little Theatre’s ‘Twas the Fight Before Christmas is perfect holiday cheer

Sophie Finn, Lydia Marston and Emma Walker are all brilliantly cast in New Plymouth Little Theatre's latest play, 'Twas The Fight Before Christmas.

Christmas. It’s a time for tinsel, turkey and time with your loved ones. Or, when Kiwi playwright Devon Williamson decides to write a play about the festive season, Christmas becomes a time when a fed up mother, rotten children, paranoid, conspiracy theorising neighbours and a suicidal French psychologist all take centre stage.

And what a gift Devon has for creating such a fun storyline, and director Mary Barron has for bringing it to hilarious life on the New Plymouth Little Theatre stage.

The opening scene, featuring Emma Walker as the harassed, fed-up Mary Harvey and John Lawson as the rooster owning, depressed French psychologist Jean Pierre not only sets the scene beautifully, but also sets an incredibly high bar for the rest of the play.

The two actors are absolutely hilarious from the moment they set foot on stage (or table). Both fully commit to their roles, drawing out not just the absolute comedy of their situations, but also plenty of humanity too, making the humour that little bit more relatable and elevating the play nicely.

As Mary, the widowed mother of two adult “rotten” daughters, Emma gets the balance between fed-up and put-upon perfectly right. As she argues with her drunken neighbour, her every word, expression and movement builds her back story. As she moves between dithering, nervous and ready to leave into an angrier version, along with a sense of clear responsibility - she can’t leave her neighbour to his dubious macrame after all - we see Mary as a whole.

In her later scenes, when she finds her inner dinosaur so to speak, Emma knocks it out of the park, with some physical comedy that has the audience crying with laughter. She commits fully to her role and it really pays off in this show.

John manages the same balance, with the added challenge of a French accent. As the pair argue, bicker and debate, their lines get faster and faster, adding to the confusion nicely. The pair have great energy together on stage and hold the audience’s attention throughout that long early scene.

John’s physicality is great, and his expressive acting brings out the comedy beautifully throughout.

Under Mary’s balanced direction, all six actors adeptly bring their characters to life, playing into the stereotypical roles they have, without turning them into caricatures.

As the conspiracy-believing neighbour Ivy, Briar Tucker brings plenty of great physical comedy to the stage. She is a brilliant comedic actor and this role could have been written with her in mind. The wardrobe department, along with props, have put together a great outfit for Ivy, and that, along with Briar’s ability to make Ivy’s conspiracy spouting sound believable means some of the scenes featuring Ivy are absolute show stealers on the night.

Briar Tucker and John Lawson bring fantastic energy to stage in New Plymouth Little Theatre's 'Twas The Fight Before Christmas.

As the simpering, babyish, mildly idiotic daughter Amanda, Sophie Finn is another outstanding actor in this show. She is new to the stage, but it’s unlikely to be her only foray into theatre as she has plenty of clear talent. Her early scenes are some of the funniest of the night, and she has a great sense of comedic timing that pays off brilliantly throughout.

As Stella, Amanda’s sister and complete opposite in character, Lydia Marsten is beautifully fierce. As she stalks on to the stage, followed by her doormat husband Desmond (Bailey Thompson), she demands attention, from her husband, her mother, her sister and the audience as a whole.

As she berates her mother, dismisses her husband and mocks her sister, barely drawing a breath between sentences, she brings plenty of energy, elevating the drama nicely while keeping the comedy at the fore.

As meek and mild Desmond, Bailey brings some lovely expressive physicality to the role, almost flinching at times when his wife’s strident tone and predator-like energy is focused on him.

Mary Barron has chosen a great play, some fantastic actors and a talented creative team to make sure this festive play is everything it can be. She has a great understanding of the comedy genre, and knows exactly how to bring out the humour without going overboard.

This a great, fun show to start the silly season with, you will leave with sides hurting from laughing, hands tingling from the deserved applause, and, perhaps, a renewed sense of thanks for your own family and friends.

The Details

What: ‘Twas The Fight Before Christmas by Devon Williamson, directed by Mary Barron

Where: New Plymouth Little Theatre

When: November 22-December 9

Tickets: www.iticket.co.nz