(Or at least from Page to Front Room…)
It was the perfect WHY-DON'T-YOU? Moment. Cwg has been posting weekly pieces
of work through the U3A newsletter since July 2022. They now number some 90. We also
mail them to friends and family.
But then one of them said, 'They could make a nice comedy sketch show. Why
don't you adapt some. Put them on in your front room and invite enough people to fill it?'
And we thought Why not? So we did…
And gave 2 consecutive evening performances ably supported by two friends as
performers and another two acting as 'front of house'. (We only work in two's.)
26 characters, 16 sketches. These featured Colin, a shy bird 'expert'. An
incompetent Genie. The desperate Board of an NHS Trust. An arm-wrestling Nun. A
hungry Pterodactyl. And the Head Teacher of a Trust school trying to get rid of a 'hopeless'
pupil.
All of them to be played by a cast of 4. All pensioners. None with any acting
experience. So naturally it was terrible…
No, it wasn't. With morning and evening bird effects provided by a cooperative
audience…
it was a hoot!

Our audience was treated to drinks beforehand - proceeds to WellChild Charity -
and then invited into the 'theatre' where programmes awaited and the show began. With
minimal props and costume changes we ran varied sketches linked by the promise of a
Special Guest. A very glitzy Dame of the British Theatre who had agreed to help us with
our show but somehow never turned up.

Sketches featured a lady who may, or may not, have faked reports of rare birds just
to get a man, any man, into her house: 'Would you like to come in and discuss this?' But
also, sadly, and more realistically, an NHS CEO desperate to come up with good ideas to
make outpatient waiting times more palatable. (…. “A 'raffle ticket' approach to
appointments. This will provide fun as patients wait to see if they have got lucky each
week”). A blond mop-headed ex-Prime Minister made a charity appeal on behalf of an
Eton College desperate to flush its toilets. An expert revealed how T.S. Eliot's lyrics to
Britain's 1960 Eurovision Song Contest only achieved second place. A planned scheme to
'share a husband' that went disastrously wrong.

But there was pathos too. A loving Mum, whose own husband did not share her
aspirations for their son, had to face the boy's expulsion from the Amol Rajan Academy for
Boys by a despairing Headteacher.
Our audience seemed genuinely enthusiastic about the show, and we made a little
over £500 which has been donated to a charity supporting very sick children.

As writers and cast we learned a huge amount about translating the written word
into performance. Bringing characters to life, exploring situations, some surreal, some
grounded in everyday ludicrous scenarios, was extremely rewarding.

But most of all…it was fun. And when we heard the sound of audience laughter the
three months of writing and rehearsal made it all so worthwhile.

And yes, in case you are wondering, the Special Guest did finally turn up to
complete our finale.

We thank everyone involved for their help and support.
As u3a urges, we brought people together to 'live laugh and learn'. And we will
never forget it.

MJM – Convenor