Moments of effective, well-written humour show promise for developing this funny but poorly structured farce; despite a weak plot, with some attention to detail this play could flourish in the future. Rating
Ok
The Fool’s Flock’s Comedy About a Vampire is energetic and engaging, with moments of sharply written dialogue. It combines slapstick, puppetry, and format suggestive of a sketch show to tell a gothic tale of plague and mysterious disappearances in a small town.
There is clearly potential in this comic trio, and the ease they display with each other and in front of an audience gives them the building blocks to develop this work into something which could maintain the standards set by its moments of comedy. The script needs tightening up in many places, and the narrative arc falls flat, but the actors do have a flair for making people laugh.
James Smith, as a hunched figure shrouded in black, welcomes audience members in with a high-pitched “Come in, come in, get out!” – an apt and effective way to set the tone for this erratic play. By the time the show starts, the limited voice lines of “Come in”/”Get out” do begin to fatigue the members of the audience who have been in situ since the doors opened, but with a little workshopping, it’s a gambit with potential. Smith’s Vlad is enigmatic and entertaining, his accent hilarious and his comic stamina admirable. His dedications to Michael Jackson, when they hit their mark, are one of the highlights of the production, but they can also be unpolished and unspecific, which risks cheapening the points where the joke really works, diluting its effectiveness.
Gunther, played by Jonathan Hieatt, is the character we track through the plot of the play – his journey to the castle, his experience meeting Vlad, right through to the end of the narrative. As a plot device, the idea of having a human that the audience follows as a facet for the ‘discovery’ of the action, is understandable, but Hieatt’s pantomime approach to his character makes it difficult to attach to him the emotional investment necessary for a protagonist. His portrayal of Gunther does have merits in its swing towards wide-eyed earnestness – he would indeed do very well in a pantomime or a children’s TV programme – but it feels like the character needs some workshopping to be able to carry the weight of audience engagement and perspective.
Peter Vetere‘s performances as “everyone else” are impressive in their diversity, his kaleidoscope of characters an essential element of the energy of the play. His priest role, however, needs slower and more considered initial introduction, with some missed moments for laughs and audience comprehension.
The costumes by Tom Gibson are absolutely stunning and the volume of them demanded by Vetere’s many characters is a hurdle Gibson overcomes with ease. The standard and depth of each costume is remarkable, and with Gunther’s particularly, the attention to detail is essential in the world-building of the play.
It is clear that the three actors, as the play’s creators, writers, and directors, could benefit from some outside input – a third party viewer with enough vision to sculpt narrative from the outside of the action, rather than from the stage itself. Overall, this piece has promise, with good one-liners but poor plot pacing and cohesion. It very much feels like it is in the beginning of the development phase, and with more attention to narrative rhythm and general refining, this has the potential to be a cracking play.
Created by Peter Vetere
Written by James Smith, Jonathan Hieatt, and Peter Vetere
Costumes by Tom Gibson
Produced by The Fool’s Flock, Peter Vetere
The Fool’s Flock’s Comedy About a Vampire played for just one night.
