Time of My Life - Wheathampstead Dramatic Society

A restaurant birthday dinner for the wife of a successful local businessman is the setting for Alan Ayckbourn’s early 1990’s play on middle class angst. But in such territory things are never as they seem. Life unfolds both backwards and forwards as sons and partners conduct their own private dramas, both comic and sad, on separate tables. Not vintage Ayckbourn and an uneven cast meant the piece never totally gelled on this first night. But interesting all the same and containing some very good performances. Jan Westgarth turns in a feisty portrayal as birthday wife Laura and Jonathan Field creates a first class multitude of odd ball waiters. Director Julie Field creates the right ambience in a play rich in exposition but a little short on dramatic conflict. But worth seeing. Not least for Sara Payne’s beautifully crafted comic girlfriend. Her unsophisticated Maureen is a joy.

Full review to follow

Runs to Saturday 18^th February – Memorial Hall, Marford Road, Wheathampstead. 8.00pm