The Hostage isn’t billed as a musical and the title doesn’t sound terribly funny, but the Peninsula Players’ latest offering is both.
“He was a bit of a drunkard, just a party animal, and it’s kind of autobiographical,” said producer Glen Brown, of Brendan Behan who wrote The Hostage.
In the Irish play an innocent British soldier is taken captive by the IRA and held hostage in a bawdy Dublin boarding house.
“It doesn’t sound like a comedy … but there’s a bunch of characters that come and go. It’s very funny,” Brown said. “There’s a gay boxer who brings home sailors and a prostitute who brings home sailors, they come and go and interact. It’s a bit of a dramatic comedy.”
The soldier has a romance with a young maid, and a crowd of colourful characters help plan his escape.
“The cast is having a hoot,” Brown said. “I’ve been doing theatre for 30 years and I’ve never seen a cast having as much fun as this.”
Brown, alongside with producing appears in a small role.
“It’s kind of a multitasking job,” he said.
The show is directed by Dick Mells, an experienced director who does a couple of shows a year with the community theatre group.
“He’s mentoring a lot of people and we’re learning a lot from him. He’s a very good director, obviously he’s been doing it for 50 years or more,” Brown said.
“We have some young actors in this play who haven’t really acted before. He’s drawing them into their characters very gently and it works. He knows how to get a performance out of actors.”
The show starts on the Peninsula in the 100-seat venue The Centre for Active Living 50-plus (1229 Clarke Rd.) on May 6 and 7 at 7:30 p.m. and 2 p.m. on May 8.
“It brings our plays out to that part of the Peninsula,” Brown said. “It’s been successful both financially and as far as for them to have access to theatre.”
For those who miss that show, Peninsula Players bring The Hostage to the Charlie White Theatre May 20 and 21 at 7:30 p.m. and May 22 at 2 p.m.
Between the two, the Players appear at the Berwick Royal Oak, May 13 and 14 at 7:30 p.m. with a 2 p.m. May 14 show.
Visit www. peninsulaplayers.bc.ca for ticket information.