Talisman Theatre and Arts Centre Barrow Road, Kenilworth CV8 1EG

Monday 10th - Saturday 15th February 2025

PRESENT LAUGHTER

We have two wheelchairs spaces as indicated on the seating plan above.

To check availability and book please contact the Box Office on 01926 856548 (or email us through our Contact Us page)

Click for Seating Plan

A hilarious glimpse into the lives of the rich and famous!

by Noël Coward

Directed by Vanessa Comer

Peek behind the curtain as Noël Coward’s ‘Present Laughter’ comes to the Talisman stage.

Successful and self-obsessed matinee idol Garry Essendine (based on Coward himself) is beset by a host of problems and larger-than-life characters as he prepares for a theatrical tour of Africa. This stylish, farcical comedy sees Garry try to navigate the chaos whilst avoiding the pitfalls of fame and fortune.

Set in the early 1940s and featuring a stellar Talisman cast, come and join us for a night of fun and laughter!

Age recommendation: Age 10 years and above or at parent’s discretion.

This amateur production of “Present Laughter” is presented by arrangement with Concord Theatricals Ltd. on behalf of Samuel French Ltd. www.concordtheatricals.co.uk

Warning: Smoking Depictions

This production includes scenes set in the 1940s in which characters are depicted smoking indoors.

We would like to reassure our audience that only prop, non-nicotine cigarettes are used in these scenes.

These props produce harmless vapour to replicate the appearance of smoking without posing any health risks.

Thank you to Kenilworth Lions Furniture Store for the loan of the sofa.

PERFORMANCE DATES & TIMES

We have two wheelchair spaces available for each performance. To book wheelchair spaces, be added to the waiting list or ticket returns, please contact Box Office on 01926 856548 (or via our Contact Us page)

Tickets are available via the online booking system with concessions available for full time students, those in receipt of a pension, Talisman members and group bookings (for parties of 10 or more).

Talisman Theatre and Arts Centre
Barrow Road, Kenilworth CV8 1FN

We have two wheelchairs spaces as indicated on the seating plan above.

To check availability and book please contact the Box Office on 01926 856548 (or email us through our Contact Us page)

Click for Seating Plan

CAST & CREW

Cast

Garry Essendine – Phil Reynolds

Daphne Stillington – Alexandra Newman

Miss Erikson – Kathy Buckingham-Underhill

Fred – Connor Bailey

Monica Reed – Aoife O’Gorman

Liz Essendine – Rosie Gowers

Roland Maule – Adam Turner

Morris Dixon – Simon Truscott

Henry Lyppiatt – Graham Buckingham-Underhill

Joanna Lyppiatt – Ruth Linnett

Lady Saltburn – Ruth Jones

Crew

Director – Vanessa Comer

Production Manager – Corrina Jacob

Set Designer – John Ellam

Props – Amanda Jones

Wardrobe – Emily Tuff

Lighting – Katie Hawke

Sound – Colin Thomas

Prompt – Laurie Weston

Publicity – Sharon Sully

DIRECTOR'S NOTES

I directed Enchanted April 18 years ago while living in Bath. The 1990s adaptation by Matthew Barber of the 1922 novel by Elizabeth von Arnim proved a magnificent success. When I returned to live in Warwickshire and joined the Talisman, I was delighted to be asked to repeat that earlier experience.

I dug back into the play with some trepidation, wondering how appropriate this romantic and moving comedy would be to today’s sophisticated audiences. I need not have worried. Just a few pages in, I was again laughing happily at this funny, well-written, award-winning play. The humour and machinations of Lotty and Rose, trying to break free from their class-ridden society, engender much laughter. Keeping everything hidden from their disapproving husbands while trying to mix with two other women of a higher class (for class, read money) still rings true today.

I hope you enjoy our story with as much joy, fun, and laughter as we have had putting it all together. I have found another superb cast, crew, set designer, and backstage helpers—just as I did before. The Talisman Theatre has an enormous public reputation for producing plays and shows of great variety and high professional standards, and I hope that Enchanted April will be added to that honourable list.

Maurice Smith