Charley’s Aunt by Brandon Thomas
Directed by Andrew Hamel-Cooke
Wednesday 15 to Saturday 18 November at 7.45, matinee on Saturday at 2.30
Tickets: adults £14, children/students £10, £12 for adults on Wednesday
A comedy by Brandon Thomas set in Oxford in 1882, this English farce follows the hilarious events that arise when two students, Jack and Charles, use the excuse of the imminent visit of Charley’s aunt Donna Lucia to invite their young ladies to their rooms.
When a telegram arrives postponing the visit of his aunt, the boys bribe a friend, Lord Fancourt-Babberley, into impersonating her.
Problems begin when the real aunt turns up under an assumed identity – of course, as everyone knows, in farce, nothing ever goes according to plan but of course, again, according to the rules of farce, everything works out fine in the end!
Walter Brandon Thomas (24 December 1848 – 19 June 1914) was an English actor, playwright and songwriter, best known as the author of the farce Charley’s Aunt. Although Thomas never repeated the prodigious success of Charley’s Aunt, he maintained a career as an actor and dramatist until his death, acting mostly in comedy, but with occasional serious roles in the plays of Shakespeare and others.
Director Andrew Hamel-Cooke‘s most recent productions include Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night and The Pajama Game (in association with Bookham Light Operatic Society).
Jon Fox from NODA reviewed both productions:
The Pajama Game
“A very strong principal cast backed by a highly enthusiastic and energetic chorus made for a very high performance standard.”
https://www.whereisthenomad.com/pajama-game-noda-review/
Pajama Game - I’m not at all in love
Twelfth Night
“This complicated and multi layered love comedy with its mistaken identity at the heart of much of the confusion and comedy was a marvellous vehicle for a richly talented company of players like the Nomads. The director had worked in great depth with the performers upon the interaction, absurdities and human qualities of the many flawed characters.”
Fabian, Sir Andrew and Sir Toby
The Nomads are members of NODA, which has a membership of 2500 amateur theatre groups and 3000 individual enthusiasts throughout the UK, staging musicals, operas, plays, concerts and pantomimes in a wide variety of performing venues, ranging from the country’s leading professional theatres to tiny village halls.