Press Release: Round and Round The Garden

Metro Theatre Vancouver is thrilled to open our 59th Season, in our 60th Jubilee Year, with Alan  Ayckbourn’s comedy Round and Round The Garden directed by Catherine Morrison on stage Oct 1 – Oct 16, 2022.

Norman’s desire for conquest takes place in a run-down garden, that, like the cracked plaster walls of the house and the well-worn outdoor chairs, has seen better days.

Alan Ayckbourn is a master of depicting the comic amidst the real everyday hurt, frustration, insecurity, and desire experienced by normal people and his characters exhibit very recognizable traits and dilemmas.
The confusions and interactions happen at the home of  sibling, Annie, who cares for her invalid mother.  She is single but is friends with her neighbour, Tom, a vet.  An unspoken attraction exists between the two but Tom’s inability to express his emotions further than tending to Annie’s cat leads to a simmering frustration on her part. Her brother, Reg and sister-in-law, Sarah, are coming to stay and take over Mother’s care so that Annie can go away for a break.  However, no one is aware that Annie’s brother-in-law, Norman, is the one who is whisking her away.  Certainly not  his wife, Ruth, who is also Annie’s sister. What a tangle! You may think so but events become even more complicated with hilarious consequences.

“The play is funny and topical. It examines human relationships, like family and marriage, through a humorous lens. ” Catherine Morrison, Director.

Cast and Production Team

CAST

Sarah – Tracy Labrosse
Ruth – Tamara Prescott
Norman – Matthew Ip Shaw
Tom – Tristen Foy
Annie – Rebecca Wass
Reg – Jordon Navratil

PRODUCTION TEAM

Director –  Catherine Morrison
Assistant Director – Hayden Clewes
Stage Managers – Shay Cameron
ASM/ Understudy – Mike Whittaker
ASM/ Props – Dan Meredith
Props – Susan  Munkeskov
General Manager/Technical Director – Les Erskine
Set Designers – Catherine Morrison /  Les Erskine
Costume Designer – Catherine Morrison
Lighting Designer – Les Erskine
Sound Designer – Roger Monk
Graphic Design – Barbara LaBounta
Promo Photography – Veronica Bonderud Photography
Production Photography – Tracy-Lynn Chernaske
Publicist / Webminder – Debra Danny

The Story of
Round and Round the Garden

“Annie” has been in a “holding pattern ” for the better ( or worse !) part of the last 2 years. Because she is unmarried, she is assigned by her family, to the care of their ailing mother.

Now “Mother” had quite the life. Multiple lovers ( many when she was married to Annie’s father ) but Annie has the opposite lifestyle. She is isolated and lonely. Her only companion is the next door neighbour “Tom”, the local veterinarian. A kind person with a way with animals – but not humans. He visits on a regular basis with the excuse of tending to the family cat  .( which spends Act 1 up a tree )

Both “Annie ” and “Tom” yearn for a relationship ( maybe with each other ? ) but both are too shy to do much about it.

Entering the mix are Annie’s older brother “Reg” and his wife “Sarah”. They have come down to Sussex to ostensibly allow “Annie”  a holiday away ( alone ).

“Annie” doesn’t plan to be alone; she and her brother-in-law “Norman” ( her sister”Ruth’s” husband ) have been texting and emailing for months arranging a weekend  away together. “Norman” ruins the plans by showing up at the family home. This alerts “Annie’s ” sister in-law “Sarah” that something is going on. She easily  makes “Annie ” realize  a weekend away in a hotel with her  brother-in-law is not a good idea.

In his despair  at losing his “dirty weekend ,””Norman gets  royally drunk and then  “tries it on” with “Sarah” .

“Sarah” further interferes by immediately texting” Norman’s ” wife “Ruth” who up to now we have heard about, but have never seen.She , too, arrives down at the country house.

Things become more confused and complicated as “Tom”  becomes convinced that “Ruth” is “carrying a torch ” for him. When “Tom” divulges this to “Annie” it precipitates a  fight between them which threatens any possible relationship.

How will it all end ? Will “Annie” go off again with “Norman”? Will she patch things up with “Tom” ? Will “Sarah” and “Reg” ever stop arguing ? Will the cat come down out of the tree?

Come to the Metro theatre and see, as these six characters go “Round and Round the Garden”.

Directors Talk

Catherine Morrison and the cast of Round and Round The Garden held an informal chat following the show on Friday, October 7, 2022:

• 1. This play is part of a trilogy.- “The Norman Conquests “. How does this affect each play in the trilogy?
• 2. Ayckbourn meant all 3 plays to be seen; what are the difficulties in presenting them thus ?
• 3. From an actor’s point of view – which would you say is more difficult; playing 3 different characters in completely different plays on successive nights, or playing the same character, but in 3 different plays with different sets  , props etc. ? ( as in the “Norman Conquests” )

After, Catherine opened the session up for questions from the audience.