"Alys, Always": The Show Where One Event Can Change Everything!

Hello world! Welcome back to another blog. Today I will be talking about my review of a play called "Alys Always", which was performed at The Lace Market Theatre, Nottingham.

The play follows Frances Thorpe, a journalist who after encountering an accident with a woman called Alys, her life suddenly changes forever after getting involved with the family. Yes I would prefer musicals to straight acting play, but because two members of The Actors Workshop Nottingham were in it, I could not miss a chance to see them in action.

Clare Moss did a brilliant job at portraying the role of Frances Thorpe. After working with her in the workshop many times and knowing how much of a committed actor she is, she shone through her role of Frances. And given the short time frame she had to learn so many lines, she definitely had a job on her hands, but she did it like the true professional she is. I also loved her transitions from breaking the fourth wall, telling the audience the next stages of the story, to then going into the scene itself. It was beautifully done and it did feel like I was going on a journey with her, going through time in the process. Well done Clare!

The Kyte family also played a huge part of the story, knowing that Alys was part of the family. There was the father Laurence, played by Gurmej Virk, who’s grateful for the support of Frances, and I had a feeling that their fling was his way of coping with his loss. There was also daughter Polly, played by Millie Rushworth, who was quite a rebel within the show, which I liked, and Millie really brought it to life. Then there was also son Teddy, played by Ollie Ennis, who was mostly stubborn towards Frances to begin with (which maybe is his form of grief as everyone handles it differently), but soon wakes up to her throughout the play. Finally, there’s Charlotte Black, played by Melanie Hamilton (who also voiced Alys at the beginning of the play), who is a family friend of the Kytes, and has nothing but kind words to say about Alys. 

The people outside of the Kytes also had a big impact. These included her work colleagues Sid, played by Wagner Rulli who may have fancied Frances, but was there to support her when she got more work, and Oliver Culpepper, played by Charlie Harris who is the more comical of them all but is also abit of a slacker when it comes to work. Mary Pym, played by Michelle Smith, was also a key figure in the play, because when hearing the news of Frances involvement with the Kytes, she maybe had the idea to use it to help the company grow. Which is very clever. Emma Rayner took on the role of Audery Gullum, and whilst it was only one appearance in the show, she definitely made her mark. And sometimes that’s all you need, abit like “King Herod” in JCS or “Pharaoh” in “Joseph and the amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat”. Well done Emma.

Bernard Whelan and Jane Pyke took on the role of Frances’ parents. Mrs Thorpe being the one who will do anything she can to make neighbours jealous (and we’ve all had that one neighbour) and Mr Thorpe being the person who has no facial expressions but the one liners being the funniest of them all! It definitely brought a lot of humour to the show, breaking up the play from its dramatic theme very nicely. 

Charlotte Hukin had 3 roles to do during the performance, which was a police woman, a waitress and a guest at an event. Now I know how tricky multi rolling can be, but she did it with such ease, showing the different characters beautifully. Well done Charlotte for taking on the difficult challenge of multi rolling. 

I also loved the transitions of scenes, with members like Emma and Matt Thomason helping out. I felt this adds to the essence of the story, and without them the show wouldn’t even be possible. And they make it seem s effortless, when in fact, it may have been one of the most difficult jobs t do, as if one person slips up (which no one did), then the whole thing could be out of sync. But well done to the crew for being a big part in the play.

I think my only downside was not the play itself. But it was more of how I had to leave early due to avoiding a overwhelming experience on the way back. And after suffering a similar scenario back at Christmas 2023, I vowed to never get myself into that scenario again. But it did come with a cost of missing the last few parts of the play. But after doing my research, I saw what happened to the character of Frances at the end, so at least I got some closure on what her outcome was, which I wasn't expecting. So I can imagine the audiences faces when Clare unmasked her evil side, which is a nice touch as if you ever meet Clare Moss in real life, she is one of the nicest people to have met.

Overall I would give the show a 4.95. The storytelling was lovely, the acting was brilliant. But if I hadn’t had to leave early then I would’ve stayed longer. 

And that was my review of the show. I hope this has been a good read, and for anyone who’s looking to take part in a performance or wanting to see what shows to watch next, here is the link to The Lace Market Theatre itself, where you can find out how it started, past productions and how to get involved:

The Lace Market Theatre

See you soon for another blog. Until next time…

This is The Autistic Actress signing off :)