Rodney’s solo treat

May 27 2008

WELL-known actor Rodney Bewes makes a welcome return to Perth Festival of the Arts on Friday to present his new show, a solo adaptation of Jerome K Jerome’s ‘On the stage – and off’.

Rodney has been an actor for 55 years, but is still best remembered for the popular television comedy series The Likely Lads.

He received critical acclaim when he brought his version of Jerome K Jerome’s ‘Three Men in a Boat’ to the Perth Festival in 2004.

This Friday in Perth Theatre, Rodney brings to life Jerome’s first book, a true story about three years of his life as a jobbing actor in the 1880s.

A rare theatrical treat is in store for everyone and particularly those unfamiliar with Jerome’s superb writing.

The young and idealistic Jerome decided to try his hand at acting, under the stage name Harold Crichton. Rodney will recount Jerome’s story as he fights his way around the world of the late-Victorian theatre, battling with forbidding landladies and unsympathetic managers, touring with second- and third-rate companies and endeavouring to make himself a ‘star’. It also embodies his observations on London theatres, his thoughts on the mysterious world of ‘behind the scenes’, and his views of the actors and management of that era.

The performance starts at 7.30pm. Tickets from the box office: 0845 612 6330.