| scenery_and_costume_notes_for_bouncers_mac_oct_19.docx |
BOUNCERS MAC 2ND OCT 2019
Bouncers was written by John Godber, an English dramatist known for his observational comedies. He has written for the TV series Brookside and Grange Hill. His plays have been performed worldwide, with Bouncers, which he wrote in 1977, been his most popular.
SCENERY
The show is centred on the events over one night, and early morning in “Mr Cinders”, a 1980’s Belfast discotheque. We meet the gals and boys looking forward to a night on the town with hopefully some action on the dancefloor, and afterwards out the back of the club. But first they must gain admittance under the watchful eyes of the club’s four resident bouncers, Eric, Judd, Ralph and Les whose word is God when it comes to who gets in, who stays outside, and who gets thrown out.
When we enter the theatre we can see three blue arches, rather like a train tunnel, receding in size towards the back of the stage. These remain static throughout but change colour becoming green, pink and yellow. Along the edge of each arch are pink and green light bulbs which will flash and also change colour as the disco progresses.
There are few props used in the show, mainly plain wooden chairs brought onto the stage as required. Two are used as the chairs in a hairdressing salon, the DJ stands on one with a microphone to make announcements, while some others are used to represent the seats in a taxi.
A confetti cannon concealed out of sight on the left of the stage throws out golden coin-sized paper when the disco starts, while red confetti is used when tensions are stirred up in the club.
Instead of props excellent use is made of sound. For instance the actors make a great job of imitating hair dryers in the salon as the girls get ready for their night out, and throughout the show there is good use of sound in the various scenarios.
Dry ice is used as well as rotating lights, like those of a mirror ball, projected onto the arches creating a 1980’s atmosphere in the disco.
As already stated very few props are used in the show because much of the action is mimed or sound is used to illustrate what is taking place on stage. Apart from the chairs, and the DJ’s microphone the only other
props used are four white handbags belonging to the female patrons of the club, and a blond wig is used in one scene in the second act.
If you are a fan of 1980’s popular music you will be in for a treat as we hear again familiar numbers from that era such as “Pump Up the Jam”, “Addicted to Love”, and “We Will Rock You” to name but a few.
CHARACTERS AND COSTUMES
Four male actors play all the characters throughout the show. The four bouncers, Les, Judd, Ralph and Eric all wear the same outfits, a black suit with satin revers, straight legged black trousers, a white shirt with a black satin bow tie, and shiny black shoes.
There are no costume changes, but when performing a dance routine on stage their jackets are tied round their waists, or removed.
The four main characters are the bouncers for whom the play is named.
Lucky Eric played by Sean Kearns is tall and athletic, he is about 50 years old. His neatly cut hair is reddish, peppered with grey, and receding at the sides. He has a strong face profile with frown lines on his forehead and a straight nose. His eyes are blue with laughter lines at the sides, and he has a short neat grey beard.
He wears a large gold signet ring on the middle finger of his right hand. Eric is the philosopher of the group who makes intelligent observances on life. He works out in the gym and boasts of his prowess on the bench press. There is an air of menace surrounding all the bouncers, but Eric has a violent temper which bubbles over when goaded by his rival Judd.
Eric also plays various other parts such as Maureen, a patron of the club and a friend of Rosie, Elaine, and Suzy. As Maureen he describes himself as fat but cuddly. All four girls carry white handbags to the club.
He will also become Baz, one of the lads who is also a patron of the club and whose mates are Jerry, Terry and Kev.
Judd played by Conor Grimes is tall, and of medium build, aged about 45-50. He is slightly balding with neatly cut grey hair. His eyes are blue with fair lashes and eyebrows. He wears black rimmed glasses, has a straight nose, and full lips. He has slight stubble on his chin and a light moustache.
Like Lucky Eric he attends the gym. He is the joker of the pack, and takes great delight in goading his rival Eric. The two men compete for the “Alfa Male” spot, which bubbles over into outright aggression at times. Like the other bouncers Judd carries with him an air of menace but is very controlled in his actions.
Judd plays other parts such as the chatty hairdresser, Cheryl, a psychopathic barber, Elaine a patron of the club and a friend of Maureen, Suzy, and Rosie. She describes herself as plain, a bit of a loser, but handy in a fight. Judd also become Terry who is one of the lads on a night out at the club along with mates Baz, Kev, and Jerry.
Les played by Ciaran Noland is about 25 years old, very tall and slim. Ralph and Les are the two younger members of the team. Les has a high forehead, short dark hair neatly cut with sideburns. He has a long face with high cheekbones, brown eyes under dark eyebrows, and a long straight nose. His small moustache is dark and he has a slight stubbly beard. He has large white teeth and a wide full lipped mouth.
He dispels tensions between Eric and Judd, but despite his peaceful intersessions with his work mates he is prone to violence towards the clubs patrons if they get out of hand. His temper has to be curtailed by Eric who claims Les has no self-control. However he displays a broad mindedness towards gay men which makes him an object of suspicion with the other bouncers.
Les plays a variety of characters including Rosie whose 21st birthday is been celebrated at the club along with her friends. Rosie describes herself as tall and thin with permed hair. He also plays Kev, one of the lads who frequent the club, and Roughage, a punk rocker with a Mohawk hair style who along with his mate Ashley (played by Ralph) is refused entry to the club.
Ralph played by Chris Robinson is about 25, very tall and muscular. He is quite handsome with dark hair swept back in a wave and cut shorter above the ears. He has piercing blue eyes, high cheekbones in a sculptured face. His nose is straight and he has a full mouth which is slightly slanted to the left, giving him an impish, though menacing, appearance, especially when he grins. When he walks he turns out his feet.
He attends a gym several times a week and trains in Tae Kwando. Like the others he can take offence, but prefers to avoid conflict situations with his work mates. He is willing to share tolerant attitudes towards gay men when Les brings it up in conversation, but will also back down to side with Judd and Eric.
Ralph plays a variety of parts including Suzy who describes herself as sexy. She wears stockings and high heels and at eighteen considers herself more sophisticated than her older friends. As Suzy Ralph pulls his suit jacket down around his shoulders, like an off-the- shoulder dress. He plays the resident DJ as well as one of the lads who frequent the club, and a punk rocker songwriter called Ashley with a Mohawk hair style, who along with his mate Roughage is refused entry to the club.
The show is approximately 70 minutes long with a short interval between the two acts.
Please be seated early if you wish to hear the notes on the performance read aloud.
Bouncers was written by John Godber, an English dramatist known for his observational comedies. He has written for the TV series Brookside and Grange Hill. His plays have been performed worldwide, with Bouncers, which he wrote in 1977, been his most popular.
SCENERY
The show is centred on the events over one night, and early morning in “Mr Cinders”, a 1980’s Belfast discotheque. We meet the gals and boys looking forward to a night on the town with hopefully some action on the dancefloor, and afterwards out the back of the club. But first they must gain admittance under the watchful eyes of the club’s four resident bouncers, Eric, Judd, Ralph and Les whose word is God when it comes to who gets in, who stays outside, and who gets thrown out.
When we enter the theatre we can see three blue arches, rather like a train tunnel, receding in size towards the back of the stage. These remain static throughout but change colour becoming green, pink and yellow. Along the edge of each arch are pink and green light bulbs which will flash and also change colour as the disco progresses.
There are few props used in the show, mainly plain wooden chairs brought onto the stage as required. Two are used as the chairs in a hairdressing salon, the DJ stands on one with a microphone to make announcements, while some others are used to represent the seats in a taxi.
A confetti cannon concealed out of sight on the left of the stage throws out golden coin-sized paper when the disco starts, while red confetti is used when tensions are stirred up in the club.
Instead of props excellent use is made of sound. For instance the actors make a great job of imitating hair dryers in the salon as the girls get ready for their night out, and throughout the show there is good use of sound in the various scenarios.
Dry ice is used as well as rotating lights, like those of a mirror ball, projected onto the arches creating a 1980’s atmosphere in the disco.
As already stated very few props are used in the show because much of the action is mimed or sound is used to illustrate what is taking place on stage. Apart from the chairs, and the DJ’s microphone the only other
props used are four white handbags belonging to the female patrons of the club, and a blond wig is used in one scene in the second act.
If you are a fan of 1980’s popular music you will be in for a treat as we hear again familiar numbers from that era such as “Pump Up the Jam”, “Addicted to Love”, and “We Will Rock You” to name but a few.
CHARACTERS AND COSTUMES
Four male actors play all the characters throughout the show. The four bouncers, Les, Judd, Ralph and Eric all wear the same outfits, a black suit with satin revers, straight legged black trousers, a white shirt with a black satin bow tie, and shiny black shoes.
There are no costume changes, but when performing a dance routine on stage their jackets are tied round their waists, or removed.
The four main characters are the bouncers for whom the play is named.
Lucky Eric played by Sean Kearns is tall and athletic, he is about 50 years old. His neatly cut hair is reddish, peppered with grey, and receding at the sides. He has a strong face profile with frown lines on his forehead and a straight nose. His eyes are blue with laughter lines at the sides, and he has a short neat grey beard.
He wears a large gold signet ring on the middle finger of his right hand. Eric is the philosopher of the group who makes intelligent observances on life. He works out in the gym and boasts of his prowess on the bench press. There is an air of menace surrounding all the bouncers, but Eric has a violent temper which bubbles over when goaded by his rival Judd.
Eric also plays various other parts such as Maureen, a patron of the club and a friend of Rosie, Elaine, and Suzy. As Maureen he describes himself as fat but cuddly. All four girls carry white handbags to the club.
He will also become Baz, one of the lads who is also a patron of the club and whose mates are Jerry, Terry and Kev.
Judd played by Conor Grimes is tall, and of medium build, aged about 45-50. He is slightly balding with neatly cut grey hair. His eyes are blue with fair lashes and eyebrows. He wears black rimmed glasses, has a straight nose, and full lips. He has slight stubble on his chin and a light moustache.
Like Lucky Eric he attends the gym. He is the joker of the pack, and takes great delight in goading his rival Eric. The two men compete for the “Alfa Male” spot, which bubbles over into outright aggression at times. Like the other bouncers Judd carries with him an air of menace but is very controlled in his actions.
Judd plays other parts such as the chatty hairdresser, Cheryl, a psychopathic barber, Elaine a patron of the club and a friend of Maureen, Suzy, and Rosie. She describes herself as plain, a bit of a loser, but handy in a fight. Judd also become Terry who is one of the lads on a night out at the club along with mates Baz, Kev, and Jerry.
Les played by Ciaran Noland is about 25 years old, very tall and slim. Ralph and Les are the two younger members of the team. Les has a high forehead, short dark hair neatly cut with sideburns. He has a long face with high cheekbones, brown eyes under dark eyebrows, and a long straight nose. His small moustache is dark and he has a slight stubbly beard. He has large white teeth and a wide full lipped mouth.
He dispels tensions between Eric and Judd, but despite his peaceful intersessions with his work mates he is prone to violence towards the clubs patrons if they get out of hand. His temper has to be curtailed by Eric who claims Les has no self-control. However he displays a broad mindedness towards gay men which makes him an object of suspicion with the other bouncers.
Les plays a variety of characters including Rosie whose 21st birthday is been celebrated at the club along with her friends. Rosie describes herself as tall and thin with permed hair. He also plays Kev, one of the lads who frequent the club, and Roughage, a punk rocker with a Mohawk hair style who along with his mate Ashley (played by Ralph) is refused entry to the club.
Ralph played by Chris Robinson is about 25, very tall and muscular. He is quite handsome with dark hair swept back in a wave and cut shorter above the ears. He has piercing blue eyes, high cheekbones in a sculptured face. His nose is straight and he has a full mouth which is slightly slanted to the left, giving him an impish, though menacing, appearance, especially when he grins. When he walks he turns out his feet.
He attends a gym several times a week and trains in Tae Kwando. Like the others he can take offence, but prefers to avoid conflict situations with his work mates. He is willing to share tolerant attitudes towards gay men when Les brings it up in conversation, but will also back down to side with Judd and Eric.
Ralph plays a variety of parts including Suzy who describes herself as sexy. She wears stockings and high heels and at eighteen considers herself more sophisticated than her older friends. As Suzy Ralph pulls his suit jacket down around his shoulders, like an off-the- shoulder dress. He plays the resident DJ as well as one of the lads who frequent the club, and a punk rocker songwriter called Ashley with a Mohawk hair style, who along with his mate Roughage is refused entry to the club.
The show is approximately 70 minutes long with a short interval between the two acts.
Please be seated early if you wish to hear the notes on the performance read aloud.
