Eddie Barker

I was unfortunate in that I went to see the play (much more expensive than the cinema) at the wonderful Theatre Royal in Newcastle. Samantha Womack attempted to play the lead role which must have been frustrating for all of the supporting roles, many of whom could in fact act. It wasn't all her fault, there is something very wrong with the script - its very difficult to empathise with any of the characters regardless of their acting ability. Womack though was I'm afraid woeful in her inability to act out the role beyond uncomfortably and stiffly clenching her fists like a child thrust in front of an audience at the school play for the majority of her stage time or to occasionally raise her voice at the end of a sentence. It was clear within the first 5 minutes that it was going to be a painful affair but the failure of numerous people to return to their seats for the second half and the number of elderly people sleeping through it (presumably admitted on cheap unsold seats) actually added to the evening - if you cant talk about how good it was at least we can talk about how bad it was. Wow! This was not a good one - don't book ahead, get your tickets on the night (there will be plenty) and make sure that you have something else planned if you decide its not worth hanging around for the second half (its not). Actually, just don't bother...….