CROSS-DRESSING, cross purposes and crossed lines all feature in Newport Playgoers’ latest production, Nobody’s Perfect, which has a plotline reminiscent of the classic Dustin Hoffman film Tootsie.
Frustrated writer Leonard Loftus has all his books rejected by a feminist publishing house because he is a man. However, when he submits a novel based on his experiences as a single parent under the pseudonym Myrtle Banbury, the editor, Harriet, loves it. The snag is she insists on meeting Myrtle so she can hand over the prize money and sign her up. In order to collect the money, Leonard is forced to dress up as a woman.
“I’ve played the dame in panto a few times but this is very different,”
says 54-year-old Lyndon who plays Leonard. “I’m portraying Myrtle as a slightly scatty maiden aunt. I have to make her just believable enough – and when you look like me, that’s quite a challenge!
The play is a marvellous comedy in the tradition of Charley’s Aunt and Some Like It Hot. My character is a shy statistician who is lumbered with a wayward teenage daughter, Dee Dee, and a rascally father, Gus, who both play along with the deception – in return for financial rewards.”
In high heels and lipstick, our hero is caught in a hilarious dilemma of cross-dressing and crosspurposes in what has been acclaimed as a classic feel-good romantic comedy. The play offers belly laughs galore – with four irresistibly loveable characters locked into a hilarious plot. The final scene has been described as a comic masterpiece.
Nobody’s Perfect by Simon Williams is at the Dolman Theatre from November 14 to 17 at 7.15 pm, with a matinee on the Saturday at 2.30 pm. To book call 01633 263670 or visit www.dolmantheatre.co.uk
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