15 - 24 May, 7.30pm

THE GOVERNMENT INSPECTOR

by Nikolai Gogol

(Translated by Alistair Beaton)

Directed by Julian Felice

Don’t blame the mirror – it’s your face that’s the problem

(Russian Folk Saying)

In a small town in the middle of the Russian nowhere, the local Mayor receives word that an inspector is being despatched by central government to scrutinize the town. Panicked, the incompetent Mayor and his band of bumbling cronies mistake a penniless nobody for the government inspector and what follows is a classic tale of corruption and mistaken identity in what has been described as the greatest play in the Russian language. As stupidity takes centre stage, an unconventional love story unravels in the background, forever changing the landscape and fortunes of this backwater town.

In his debut production with the adult group, director Julian Felice (Hard To Swallow – Youth Company production) introduces a fresh and innovative approach to the comedy, with ten actors playing all the parts and taking full advantage of the physicality of the play. A mixture of experienced hands and young talent, the cast features Joel Cooper (Moby Dick, The Weir) in the role of the bemused Khlestakov, the city-bred civil servant who unintentionally wanders into the town’s preparations for the inspection with his enterprising servant Osip, played by Simon Watson (Twelfth Night), who reprises the role he once played in a youth production of the play. Heading these preparations is Chris Westlake’s (The Coarse Acting Show, The Odd Couple) Mayor, who will employ any means to receive a good report, including the manipulative wiles of his wife Anna, played by Maggie Coleman (Misery, Outside Edge). Becky Huckle (Equus, Of Mice and Men) plays Marya, their long-suffering daughter who falls for Khlestakov’s charms. The fast-talking, spying duo of Dobchinski and Bobchinski are played by Megan Pemberton (Hay Fever, Love Me Slender) and Shannon Harris (Shakers, The Coarse Acting Show), while Denise Robertson (Dracula, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?) as the Commissioner for Education, Kate Brookes (Blithe Spirit) as the Magistrate, and Natalie Bradbury (The Coarse Acting Show, Hard To Swallow) as the Superintendent round off the rest of the Mayor’s useless cabinet.

The Government Inspector promises to be an intriguing and original outlook into a farcical romp that will blur the line between actor and character. Above all things else, though, it will be an entertaining and amusing evening to continue our celebrations in MLT’s fiftieth season.

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