Village
Idiots are a mask theatre company. Therefore there is no dialogue and
all the action is conveyed by mime. The masks worn by the many
characters in the play are spot on in expressing their personalities.
The humour is gentle and innocent.
The
setting is a run down hotel somewhere in an English seaside resort. The
action centres around the bell boy who wears a Stan Laurel look alike
mask and thus the character takes on the appearance of bemused naivety.
There is no doubt that Charles Ash as the bell boy is the star of the
play.
Many of
the elements of traditional slapstick comedy are performed with good
timing in a very tight space. The action builds to a climax where there
is general mayhem involving a hotel inspector, various tourists and the
hotel staff. For straightforward undemanding humour Hotel de Mer is good
of its type.
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