Fields of Gold at Stephen Joseph Theatre, Scarborough By Nick Quantrill

For some time now thisisUll.com has been bringing news and reviews of events that are happening in Hull. It is quite noticeable that what is going unreported is what's happening in the near-by towns surrounding the city of Hull.

A search of the Internet finds several places and events, all within easy reach from Hull, which may interest an audience starved of this information. In response to this lack of coverage from the mainstream media of Hull, thisisUll.com sets outs to bring a taster of these places and events. The Stephen Joseph Theatre in Scarborough is a case in point. Ask most people in Hull about the theatre and you'll most likely receive a blank look in return. The Stephen Joseph Theatre, located in the centre of Scarborough, is a beautiful Art Deco styled theatre on the outside but has a contemporary designed interior that makes for a pleasurable and relaxing viewing experience. The latest play to receive a world premier at the theatre is Alex Jones' Fields Of Gold.

Fields of Gold is essentially a very funny play. Whilst the humour paces the production and is used as a mechanism to entertain, the play also has a serious point to make about the farming industry and family life. Set in the midst of the foot and mouth disease of 2001, Alex Jones explores how the family-based farms that once provided a livelihood for many have now shrunk to a residual in the farming community. This play portrays the struggle these families have to endure, merely to make a living.

Ben Handley (Colin MacLachlan) is the current proprietor of Handley Farm, a farm that has been in his family for generations. It is the certainties of years of family tradition that plays-off against the uncertainties brought about by the impending disaster about to hit the farm. As foot and mouth disease sweeps through the livestock, Ben has to face up to the fact that farming and his family are changing irrevocably. Ben is forced to come to terms with the fact that it is his daughter, Jule (Claire Lams), and not his son, Jem (Andrew Turner), who is interested in the future running of the farm. The financial problems and the unpalatable idea of organic farming are only minor distractions though for Ben though as he also has to cope with Jem's preoccupation with aliens and cornfields, a deteriorating relationship with his wife Mags (Susan Twist), Jule's blossoming relationship with an unsuitable boyfriend, Dave (Andrew Brooke) and his live-in mother, Lily (Judy Wilson) who suffers from Alzheimer's Disease.

It's certainly not all doom and gloom though. Much of the humour in the play is derived from how Ben interacts with his family. The black comedy will have you laughing along before the excellent script writing reveals the serious point lurking beneath the laughs. Andrew Turner is excellent as Jem and steals the majority of the best comedy lines whilst the cameos from Ben's mother, Lily, are often hilarious.

As the play moves forwards you are skilfully pulled in two directions by the script writing. Whilst Ben is essentially a decent man who is doing the best he can for his family in very difficult circumstances, the darker, much more unpleasant side of his character is never far from the surface, making it difficult to feel too much sympathy for him. Quite how far Ben will go to protect the farm and the price he is prepared to pay for this, both financially and emotionally, remains in the balance until the very end of the play. Fields of Gold is a humorous, yet moving slice of family life on a contemporary farm that is trying to make its way in an increasingly uncertain world. The issues the play touches on are not only relevant to the countryside and farming. The dilemmas and issues that Ben and his family have to face are relevant to everybody. For more information and ticket availability for this excellent production got to: Box Office - 01723 370541 Website - www.sjt.uk.com

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