A new body of work at The Playhouse
Warwick Briggs as funeral assistant Robert Swipe. Photo: Supplied.
A dead body, a dominatrix and all manner of dodgy behaviours will feature in the Takaka Drama Society’s latest production, Stiff, which opens next Wednesday.
The show is the twenty-fourth to be produced by Gary Bowden, and he is hoping that Stiff will play to full houses throughout its five-night season.
“Stiff is a farcical, adult black comedy set in New Zealand,” said Gary. “It’s peppered with hilarious one-liners and preposterous situations. Broad-minded audiences will find it a rare treat.”
Written by April Phillips, Stiff opened in London recently and Gary says that it is already beginning to gather something of a cult following.
Confused hooker Angel Delight (Alison Ramsay) discovers that she has inherited a funeral parlour. Deciding to use the parlour as a cover for a brothel, Angel enlists the help of three of her colleagues from off the street—the naïve and dim-witted Sherry (Lila McIntyre-Neary), a transvestite named Delilah (Steve Wilkinson), and Roxanne Paine, the dominatrix (Billy Kerrisk). All goes well until the unfortunate demise of one of their customers.
Next Wednesday’s opening night will be a gala occasion, with the foyer decked out like a brothel, complete with seductive hostesses. Patrons that night will be shouted nibbles and a glass of wine.
Gary said, “It’s definitely a show with a difference. Another feature that’s a bit of a departure is that we’ve got a trio of talented local singers—Cathryn Sangster, Martine Bouillir and Diane Langford—who perform raunchy pop-song commentaries on many of the scenes. They’re accompanied by the gifted Jochen Maurer. We’ve got an added incentive for people who attend on opening night, too. One of them will win a private massage—proper, not improper—from a qualified local masseuse.”
Stiff runs from Wednesday 2 September to Sunday 6 September at 8pm each evening. Tickets are $12 from Paradise Video.
Neil Wilson
