REVIEW / Gavin Maclean
A wet, freezing night was the ideal time to sample Musical Theatre Gisborne’s production The Vicar of Dibley — The Holy Trinity, such was the warmth of the clubrooms in Innes St and the hospitality provided. Their third foray into Dibley, using almost the same actors as before, proved just as hilarious thanks to the brilliant scripting of the original television series, and the casting of the eccentric characters.
Yes, there is a story, three plots in fact; but the joy is in the trivia — the distractions that bring life to the village council meetings, and the classic cosy interludes where the gormless Alice, played to perfection by Olivia White, fails with her intransigent logic to get the jokes told by the vicar. Quannah Nickerson provides an admirable imitation of Dawn French, hovering between subtle reactions and outright crassness. Her dancing pumpkin is a visual highlight.
Hugo McGuiness makes a most credible uptight, sly landowner, acting with some fine subtlety as possibly the most normal character around. His romantic transformation when besotted with the vicar is wonderfully executed. His son Hugo is played by Sabian Coomber-Nickerson, a thick and upright character, consistently maintained.
Treva Rice is again excellent as the stammering, revoltingly lovable Jim; as is Dave Newsham, a fascinatingly boring Frank. Angela Stuart brings appropriate dowdiness and a range of inedible baking products — along with a sweet singing voice — to the role of the once-dead Mrs Cropley, conveniently resurrected for the stage show.
Owen, the revoltingly unlovable farmer, is again superbly realised by Ben Chisholm’s voice and posture. And he throws a mean punch, the best moment of stage violence I’ve seen locally in a long time.
The extras in this production are real finds: Kelly Griffiths, convincing as a reporter and a social worker, and Mikey Jones as the bishop with the frightening vocal tic, and a smooth representative of the Water Board with an authentic Northern accent.
Jill White as director has managed a smooth-running production, with musical invention covering the multiple scene changes, helped by unobtrusive lighting, stage management and well-timed sound effects.
The audience of 30 to 40-odd people — though nowhere near as odd as the ones onstage — made up a surprisingly well-filled house and were rapturous in response.
