“A Bunch Of Amateurs” by Nick Newman and Ian Hislop.

West Bridgford Dramatic Society

The Studio Theatre, West Bridgford.

A washed-up Hollywood star, Jefferson Steel, is flown to England to play the title role in King Lear at "Stratford" believing he will be appearing onstage at the legendary Royal Shakespeare Company in Stratford-upon-Avon.

Instead he finds he has signed on with the "Stratford Players" in the Suffolk village of Stratford St John. He arrives in England with his career deteriorating and having problems with his daughter who is an aspiring actress on the fringes of the New York theatre.

The local villagers are over the moon to have such a “star” playing with them.

Will the arrogant Steele knuckle down to his latest role, or will he forever play the Hollywood star?

Kristina Russell (Dorothy Nettle) returns to the stage after a short break. Dorothy's part in King Lear is as the Director as well as The Fool. You can see the furrowed brow of frustration on the Director's face as she tries to keep everyone happy in what seems a pretty desperate situation. Hopefully Kristina will not leave it too long before she treads the boards again.

Christine Thomas (Mary Plunkett) makes her WBDS debut as Mary, who in turn plays Regan. There's a touch of the Liz Smiths about Christine, or maybe about Mary; it;s often difficult to separate the two when an actor plays an actor playing a role in a play within a play.

Tim Farrow (Nigel Dewbury), and Dewbury is playing The Duke Of Kent. In the bio in the programme, it states that this is Tim's first attempt at anything to do with Shakespeare. With his stage presence and commanding voice, I think that Tim should consider performing more Shakespeare because when he quoted the lines from King Lear, he captivated me successfully. In this play I enjoyed the strong leading character role greatly.

Luke Bratton (Denis Dobbins) plays the health and safety manager for the drama society in this play. Denis plays the Duke of Gloucester with The Stratford Players. Apart from the very natural style of acting Luke has, what I also noticed was that in every change of scene, there was a change of costume. This may not seem a big deal but so many times I've seen, especially with a quick succession of scene changes, a character wearing the same top for example. Every scene change bought a different T Shirt, or shirt, bringing reality to the fore. It's the little things that I appreciate,a s well as Luke's fluid acting style.

Bill Niven (Jefferson Steel) makes his debut with the society and Jefferson is taking the lead role in King Lear. Bill plays a typically selfish American with no time for manners, and displays an appalling lack of class, considering himself too big for this lowly setting. Where has this actor been hiding and why have I not seen him on a local stage until now? The accent was wonderful, not over the top, unlike the ego of Steel, and reminded me of the vocal style of Jerry Springer, making him sound all the more like a natural Yank. Can't wait to see what comes next for Bill.

Emily Martin (Lauren Bell) also makes her debut for WBDS, and her first time back on stage since the pandemic. Lauren plays Goneril in the play within a play. Emily has performed the real thing; Shakespeare that is, but also shows that she can handle comedy as well. It's lovely to see so many new faces on one stage, and people with so much talent.

Katie Minns (Jessica Steel) is yet another WBDS debutee, and also an actor who has returned to the stage after a long break from the stage. Jessica plays the role of Cordelia. Again, a comfortable and natural performer, and for one who has no history of performing Shakespeare, the lines from King Lear just rolled off her tongue. Kate also doubled up by playing the reporter at the start when she was interviewing Steel.

Calum Sharp voiced the journalists late on in the play, hounding Steel from behind closed doors.

Directed by Robert Dixon, this is one of those plays that should be performed more than it is because it's such fun and is almost a mickey take, as well as showing the trials and tribulations of local drama groups. Wonderfully pacy and every bit of comedy in the script has been wrung out on stage and presented by this very talented cast. Plus there have been so very inspired casting, especially with so many new faces.

The sound design and operation are by Calum Sharp. Timing is the key and Calum is the key-holder.

The lighting design is by Jeremy Foley and John Fletcher and operated by Dom Gaskell. Working hand in hand with Calum in the lighting department, there were slow fades which allowed scene changes to be carried out, plus Shakespearian quotes to distract from these changes. No smoke and mirrors, just sound and lighting working in perfect harmony.

The set, by the way, at first sight looks simple, and then we have foldaways to encompass another setting. With the addition of a massage table, we were transported to another scene, and with the presentation of King Lear comes more scene props. An example of how well chosen and placed props can change everything.

It's been too long since I've seen this play, and this production confirmed just why I love a well written comedy play within a play, play. For those who already have tickets for this piece of theatre, you're in for a brilliantly funny evening.

"A Bunch Of Amateurs" will be at The Studio Theatre in West Bridgford until Saturday 4 March. A bunch of amateurs, West Bridgford Dramatic Society, are certainly not.