Noises Off 
                            by Michael Frayn

Directed by Ted Osborne
Produced by Aimee Grice
Run Dates: January 21-23, 2016

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Our fall 2015 production of Noises Off was deferred to the end of January, 2016, running exclusively at the Frank Venables Theatre in Oliver. This exclusive Oliver engagement was due to the elaborate, revolving set set which could not be accommodated on the Osoyoos stage. 

​The elaborate and changing set, a 16th century mill house, is as much a character as the cast. Designed and built by Shawn Henderson  and Craig Bjornson, the two-storey set changes twice during each performance, to reveal both the onstage and backstage action.
  - Video credit Brohm Dason

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Slamming doors and jamming doors. Crashing props. Brandished  axes. Bottles of whisky. Dropped trousers and dropped plates of sardines. Prat falls and brawls. Farce is all about noise and sight gags, and SOAP’s presentation of Noises Off delivered on all counts.

This script treats the audience to three versions of Nothing On (the play-within-a-play):

• Act 1 follows a hapless company of actors as they limp through the final dress rehearsal of an English sex comedy (and play-within-a-play), Nothing On.  Muddled lines, inopportune entrances, collapsing set pieces, love triangles, artistic temperament, and a clueless blonde in lingerie are driving the cast’s bullying director, Lloyd Dallas, to madness.
• Act 2 reveals a brawling backstage view of their touring performance.
• Act 3 is the riotous closing night, when most lines are forgotten and the cast of Nothing On must improvise their way to the final curtain. 

Noises Off takes its title from a stage direction for sounds coming from behind-the-scenes. In this case, the “noises off” are the unplanned crashes and screams of the actors as the play-within-a-play slowly disintegrates into chaos. 

The elaborate and changing set, a 16th century mill house, is as much a character as the cast. Designed and built by Shawn Henderson  and Craig Bjornson, the two-storey set changes twice during each performance, to reveal both the onstage and backstage action.

​Director Ted Osborne holds the reins on this careening comedy, aided by stage manager Diane Gludovatz. Aimee Grice makes her debut as producer with the help of countless volunteers.

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Behind the Scenes:

• Producer: Aimee Grice
• Director: Ted Osborne
• Stage Manager: Diane Gludovatz
• Set Design & Construction: Craig Bjornson & Shawn Henderson
• Costumes: Bernice Myllyniemi
• Makeup: Lisa Gludovatz
• Properties: Janice & Terry Goodman
• Sound and Light Design: Tom Szalay
• Sound Operator: Tom Szalay
• Light Operator: Aimee Grice
• Front of House & Concession: Louise Szalay
• And MANY OTHERS who pitched in to make this show possible!

Cast and Characters

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Carrie Lyle

• (Off stage Dotty) A forgetful late-middle-aged actress. Dating Garry, though she attempts to make him jealous by meeting with Freddy.
• (On Stage Character: Mrs. Clackett) A Cockney housekeeper for the Brent's home in England. Hospitable, though slow.

Trevor Leigh

• Lloyd Dallas, the director of the play, Nothing On. Temperamental. One third of the Lloyd–Poppy–Brooke love triangle.

Craig Bjornson

• (Off stage: Garry) An actor who never finishes a sentence. Easily fired up, repeatedly tries to attack Freddy after believing that Dotty was cheating on him with Freddy. Speech affectations disappear onstage but are ever-present offstage. Dating Dotty.
• (On Stage Character: Roger) A real estate agent who is attempting to rent Flavia's and Phillip's home, but uses it for his own personal benefit.

Robin Stille

• (Off Stage: Brooke) A young inexperienced actress who pays no attention to other actors, either in performance or backstage. She seems as though she is not really present – like she is somewhere else inside her head. One-third of the Lloyd–Poppy–Brooke love triangle.
• (On Stage Character: Vicki) An English woman who works for Inland Revenue and is trying to woo Roger.

Jen Jensen

• Poppy Norton, assistant stage manager. Emotional and over-sensitive, she understudies for Brooke, which further complicates the Lloyd-Poppy-Brooke love triangle.

Nathan Linders

• (Off Stage: Freddy) An insecure, overthinking actor who gets a nosebleed at the first hint of violence and is always looking for his motivation.
• (On Stage Character: Phillip Brent) Lives out of the country with Flavia to avoid paying taxes. They are secretly visiting home to celebrate their anniversary.
• (2nd on-Stage Character: Sheikh) A wealthy Arab man interested in renting the house.

Penelope Johnson

• (Off stage Belinda): Cheerful and sensible, a reliable  actress, who may have feelings for Freddy.
• (On Stage Character: Flavia Brent) Phillip Brent's English wife. She is dependable, though not one for household duties.

Brohm Dason

• Tim Allgood, the over-worked stage manager, carpenter and jack of all trades. Chronically exhausted and sleep-deprived. Understudies for Selsdon and Freddy.

Michael Ryan

• (Off Stage: Selsdon) An elderly alcoholic who hides his bottles onstage. If he is not in sight while rehearsing, the stage crew must find him before he passes out. Is hard of hearing when he wants to be.
• (On Stage Character: Burglar) Old man in his seventies, breaking into the Brent's home.