The Dresser [VERIFIED]
PLANO, Texas, Oct. 3, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Trick or treating is a staple of the Halloween season, but most of the focus in recent years has been on the treat. While we all love a good treat, Halloween falls flat without a good trick. That's why Chester Cheetah is turning the tables on typical holiday traditions by finding opportunities for parents to get playful during the "31 Days of Halloween Mischief." And a doll-sized Chester Cheetah will be watching from the dresser all month long as the Halloween season's inspiration for pranks, tricks and wisecracks.
The Dresser
"Sir" (Albert Finney) is a highly-respected Shakespearean actor in a broken-down traveling company of thespians. Because of war shortages, transportation, lodging and simple things like face powder are tough to come by, but the audiences are as appreciative as ever. Trying to keep Sir on his feet and fit to perform is Norman, his dresser (Tom Courtenay), a fussy busybody with a weakness for his hip flask. The trouble is that Sir is becoming so erratic in his behavior, some of the company including his wife "Her Ladyship" (Zena Walker) wonder if he should be performing at all.
Sir is so self-obsessed and vain that nobody sees what's happening to him except Norman, his dresser. The play covers one theater move and the ragged preparations for a performance that nobody is sure will come off. Sir starts in ridiculously poor shape and has to be reconstructed from the ego up by Norman, who plays all kinds of games to get him washed and into costume. Not helping much is Madge, the stage manager who once hoped to be Sir's wife (Madge). Her Ladyship's concern for Sir waned a long time ago when she realized that even her best efforts will always be ignored. In a cute scene that pretty much sums up Sir's relations with female cast members, he "auditions" an aspiring young girl (Cathryn Harrison) for the thrill of seeing her legs. She also weighs a fraction of his present leading lady, and he's thinking of how much lighter she'll be to carry on stage!
In a touring Shakespearean theater group, a backstage hand - the dresser, is devoted to the brilliant but tyrannical head of the company. He struggles to support the deteriorating star as the company struggles to carry on during the London blitz. The pathos of his backstage efforts rival the pathos in the story of Lear and the Fool that is being presented on-stage, as the situation comes to a crisis.
Albert Finney overacts gloriously as the overacting, overbearing tyrant 'Sir', lead actor and leader of a theatrical touring company performing different Shakespeare plays every night, and Tom Courtenay gloriously camps it up as Norman, his camp dresser, valet and, well, carer, I suppose.Finney's character is based on Sir Donald Wolfit, the talented but extremely temperamental and difficult actor to whom writer Ronald Harwood was personal dresser for many years.There's good support from the rest of the cast, particularly Eileen Atkins as Madge, the stage manager.It's a story of unrequited love as it's obvious both Madge and Norman have long been in love with 'Sir' but get little in return for all their hard work. You just wonder what it is about this abrasive, cantankerous old man that inspires such devotion.Very much a theatrical film (adapted from the play) about the theatre, but there's still lots to enjoy for those of us whose tastes are more cinematic.
Playwright Ronald Harwood's two-act "The Dresser" played London's West End in 1980 and went on to become one of the most highly acclaimed theatrical productions of the 1981 Broadway season. I borrowed from my library a copy of the original script, published as an 85-page hardbound edition by Grove Press, Inc., which contains none of the changes later made in the New York stage version. In the Foreword by Hardwood, he describes his inspirations for the play, including his five-year acquaintance with the renowned actor Sir Donald Wolfit, CBE, as well as numerous actor-managers and dressers he met in the theatre, who became models for his characters.
This heartwarming play is based on the author's own experiences as dresser to the great actor, Sir Donald Wolfit. The action takes place backstage at a theatre in the English provinces during WWII. The story centers around Sir, the last of the great breed of actor/managers, and Norman, his faithful dresser.
Feyre's Dresserby feyspeakerOwner(s)Feyre Archeron
Elain Archeron
Nesta Archeron
UsageContain clothes Feyre's dresser is an old wood dresser that contains a small number of clothes. Situated in the room that she shares with her sisters in the cottage, it has three drawers, each painted by Feyre with different symbols: flowers for Elain, flames for Nesta, and the night sky for herself.
Two years before the events of A Court of Thorns and Roses, when Feyre was only 17, Elain bought her three cans of paint - blue, red, and yellow - which Feyre used to paint every surface of their cottage, including the old wood dresser she shared with her sisters. For every drawer, she painted something that would symbolize each sister's personality. On the first drawer, she painted flowers for sweet, gentle Elain. On the second, she painted flames for angry and cold Nesta. But when she came to the third drawer she didn't know what to paint. Later she painted the night sky for herself.
THE DRESSER runs at North Fourth Art Center, 4904 4th St. NW, Albuquerque, NM 3 weekends, from January 13th - 29th, 2023, Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 PM, Sunday matinees at 2 PM. For more information, season and individual tickets, and COVID-19 guidelines, go to Click Here or call (855) 937-8505.Written in 1980, THE DRESSER is a bracing, heartbreaking drama set back stage at a theatre in the English provinces during WWII; an elegy to a by-gone era. Director Colleen Neary McClure says she has always been fascinated with what happens behind the scenes and in an actor's mind in theatre and film. "As an actor myself, I know the struggles that actors go through. Losing one's nerve can be devastating - Laurence Olivier lost his nerve as a stage actor at the age of 64. 'Sir', played by Peter Shea Kierst, is in the same predicament. It is up to the dresser 'Norman', played by Yanning Morin to get 'Sir' through his breakdown and onstage."
Sir Ronald Harwood CBE FRSL was a South African-born British author, playwright, and screenwriter, best known for his plays for the British stage as well as the screenplays for The Dresser and The Pianist, for which he won the 2003 Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay. He based the play on his experiences as dresser to English Shakespearean actor-manager Sir Donald Wolfit, who is the model for the character 'Sir' in the play.Once again, Colleen Neary McClure directs a cast of many of the most talented actors in the Albuquerque theatre community. Other members of the cast are Neil Faulconbridge, Levi Gore, Fawn Hanson, Caedmon Holland, Versai Knight, Aodán Luthazar, Jessica Osbourne and Philip J. Shortell.WEST END PRODUCTIONS, established in 2015, focuses exclusively on the treasure trove of theatrical gems, past and present, from England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales. WEP stages works ranging from classical repertory to the most contemporary of authors, and everything in between. Our pledge to Albuquerque audiences is to provide entertaining, thought provoking and heart-touching productions while always maintaining the highest professional standards.
The great thing about working with chalk paint is that it will adhere to most existing finishes. If you are using another type of paint, such as one with a lacquer or shiny finish, you'll need to sand the dresser down so that the new paint adheres well. 041b061a72
