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Our next production
Curtain Up on Murder
A thriller by Bettine Manktelow
Produced by Andrea Varnavides
"An amateur drama company is rehearsing in the theatre at the end of a pier. Storms rage overhead and the doors are locked - they are trapped! Events take a sinister turn when a mysterious, ghostly presence passes across the stage, and when the Assistant Stage Manager falls to certain death through a trapdoor, the remaining actors are thrown into disarray. Their panic increases when one of the actresses is poisoned and it becomes evident that a murderer is in their midst - a murderer, it soon transpires, who will not stop until they are all dead…"
“an engaging and entertaining thriller, and a skilfully written piece of suspense.”
Performances will be held at the Memorial Hall, St Andrew’s URC, Shaftesbury Avenue, Leeds 8 on
Thursday, Friday, Saturday
20, 21, 22 November 2008 at 7.30pm
Tickets are £4 adult, £2 child.
Call the box office on 0113 268 2041 for tickets.
Alternatively use our Contact form.
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Murder at Deem House
A play by Sam Bate presented by RoCo on 25-27 March 2004
A cast of ten, with four new RoCo members, brought together by an experienced producer, Andrea Varnavides, gave us an excellent evening's entertainment.
Those converging on Deem House included John Dudley (David Blackburn), striking the right note as the scrupulous, doomed lawyer in love with his secretary Denise Talbot, convincingly played by Clare King. His alcoholic and truly hysterical wife Sylvia Dudley, dramatically interrupting them by entering through the French window, was excellently portrayed by new member Andrea Wells. So, too, was his well-meaning receptionist Judy Donlan (Kay Heap, also a new member).
 The excitement was maintained through a murder and an attempted murder.
The final scene unravels the grim machinations of the two scheming nurses, the dissembling Rhona Iver (Pauline Pitman) and ruthless Gladys Boone (Brenda Porter).
The mystery, involving two shootings and a forged will, was competently disentangled by Superintendent Forrest, ably played by Brian Marston, with the aid of Detective Sergeant Grey (Pete Grocock, a welcome newcomer) and moral support at critical points from the forthright Dr Knowles (Irene McCartney, a further new member). Light relief and vital clues came from TV-struck Flora, very well played by Emma MacFadyen, who bobbed in from the kitchen every few minutes.
The appropriate stage set, noises off (including gunshots), lighting and so on, easily taken for granted, depend on the efforts of a large and dedicated crew behind the stage.
Thanks must also be given to all assisting with publicity, box office and refreshments.
Pam & Jeremy Freeman
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