ORPHEUS IN THE UNDERWORLD (ParkHanmer), Kingston O.S., Richmond Theatre, Thursday 30 Nov. 1978.

This proved to be a pleasant but unexceptional, standard, aboveaverage amateur production (and that's meant to damn it with faint praise). Richard Morris's sets were pretty, and the costumes (Mary Payne) were on the whole delightful, though in one or two cases, inappropriate. The music, however, was lethargic and lacklustre, and the production tame and totally lacking in any "joiedevive". The Baccanalian scene looked positively English drawingroom, one did wish they could get down to a few more basics. There were some wellcharacterized performances by some of the principals. James Skeggs as Bacchus (my main reason for attending) was hampered by a most unsuitable costume a curious emerald green "mini" which made it impossible for him to look the sexsymbol that he was meant to be. The choreography was peculiar, the cancan is called a galop in Park's text, but the dance that James & co were given to do did not seem to be either. They danced beautifully but it was all about as erotic as the Arab Dance from Tschaikovsky's Nutcracker. MICHAEL WALTERS

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