Funeral Games

Alexandra Treacy gets deadly serious...

Corpus Playroom Mainshow - 7pm Tues 3rd-Sat 7th November

3/5

Walking into the Corpus playroom can be a disorientating experience if you're not used to it. With the audience on two sides and the front of the stage skewed towards a corner there is a sense that the world in this theatre is not quite as it should be; an appropriate setting for a performance of the darkly comic 'Funeral Games'. The play delves into the twisted world of two priests and their involvement in murder, reputation, adultery and cake tins. As a difficult mixture of subtle satire and larger than life characters this is a show that demands a huge range of skills from all involved and The Mighty Players definitely deliver.

The greatest strength of the show lies in the way the characters are brought to life on stage. James Swanton gives a fantastically physical interpretation of Pringle, the priest who gives fresh meaning to the phrase 'all publicity is good publicity', bringing out the manic heart of the character in every movement, whilst retaining the wittiness of the dialogue.

A perfect foil for this exuberance is found in Jack Hudson's Caulfield, the sleuth drawn into the web of deceit and Dundee cake, performed in a beautifully deadpan manner that takes the comedic heights of the play to an even greater level.

Giulia Galastro and Matthew Barr also give equally strong performances as Tessa and MacCorquodale, engaging and skilfully acted with nice attention to the details of the characters.

The set and costumes all fit to a striking black, white and red theme, which neatly highlights the combination of religion, passion and murder within the play, giving a powerful undertone of darkness to the witty and often clownish humour.

If a flaw has to be found it would be with the slightly clumsy set changes, which distract from the flow of the performance and things seem a little disjointed at times.

This isn't helped by the slow pace of the opening scenes, but when it does pick up the comedy shines through, making it a show worth sticking with. On the whole 'Funeral Games' is an entertaining night out, funny and intriguing in equal measure, and involves the best way to link a priest, a severed hand and a cake tin that you are likely to see in a while.

Alexandra Treacy