Dramas off-stage and on in Baroque’s hilarious and farcical play-within-a-play

Imagine you’re settled into your seats for a night at the theatre - the scene is set, the lights have dimmed and the audience and cast are just getting into the swing of things, when all of a sudden one of the actors forgets his lines, has a slight breakdown and threatens to kill another member of the cast.

Not exactly a normal night at the theatre, but that’s what happens in Kindly Leave The Stage; a play within a play about a theatre company which has more drama off-stage than on.

In Kindly Leave The Stage, the marriage of Rupert and Sarah is on the rocks and their lawyer friends Charles and Madge agree to handle the divorce, but Rupert can’t conduct himself normally, forgets his lines and has his violent outburst.

The rest of the cast try to ignore the incident and forge ahead with the original play, with hilarious consequences as a real life marital comedy evolves.

Presented by Baroque Theatre Company, the play explores the off-stage jealousies and entanglements between the actors, and a whole new level of artistic differences.

It’s written by John Chapman who was part of the writing team behind television series Are You Being Served?, and the light-hearted play pokes fun at the complete theatricality of stage folk.

Baroque Theatre Company launched the regional tour of Kindly Leave The Stage in 2010, and it was so successful the group have decided to tour with the play again on a much larger scale.

Directed by the award-winning Adam Morley and produced by Claire Bibby, it’s a deliciously silly comedy in which nothing is quite what it seems.

Full of farcical humour, slapstick and wordplay, it’s a theatrical treat to lift your spirits.

At The Grove Theatre in Dunstable on Saturday April 20, 7.30pm.