You may have missed the first, second, and third performances of the epic British comedy series Fawlty Towers, but good news: the Sooke Harbour Players are bringing the wacky Brits back in town for a fourth run.
Like previous renditions of the show, this will be presented as both a dinner theatre and a theatre-only production.
The production is based on the British TV series of the same name, which takes the setting in Fawlty Towers, a fictional hotel in the seaside town of Torquay, in Devon, England, with much of the action revolving around the two main characters, Basil Fawlty, and his bossy wife Sybil.
Majority of the show’s episodes is about the duo’s escapades, and hilariously awkward situations with their often eccentric staff and guests.
Steve Anderson, Sooke Harbour Players co-director, feels pretty good about this next show.
“Fawlty Towers started out as an experiment to see if British humor would fly in Sooke, and it does, because it was a big success the first three times we did it,” he said.
The production will be split between a senior and junior cast group, each of whom will perform different episodes.
The senior group will perform two episodes: The Kipper and the Corpse, where Basil has to figure out a way to deal with a dead guest in one of the rooms at Fawlty Towers, a revised version of The Germans, where some German guests awkwardly (and hilariously) clash with Basil and his staff.
The junior team will play The Anniversary, where Basil plans a secret anniversary for Sybil, while Sybil pretends to be sick to make Basil feel bad about repeatedly forgetting their anniversary in the past.
As such, there will be two Basils, and two Sybils, and duplicates of all the others.
For Paul Holmes, who plays Basil Sr, it’s a familiar sight, as he returns for the Players’ fifth production, albeit for the first time on Fawlty Towers.
He was at first shocked and a little nervous about carrying on the torch playing as the prolific Basil.
“I was thinking I would get a small part, but when they offered me the role, I was floored. They’re huge shoes to fill, and it’s not just John Cleese’s shoes, but other actors who’ve done this role in Sooke really well,” Holmes said, adding he wants to play Basil by the book.
“Fawlty Towers is so engrained in our culture, you can’t be too creative with it, you have to play it straight.”
He’s even growing a bushy and very Britannic mustache, much like the original Basil, too.
First expected performance is April 2 at the Prestige hotel, where guests will be given a three-course gourmet dinner theatre performance, all for $75, while the April 9 and 10 shows will be $20 at the Edward Milne Community School theatre.
More updates on the exact show times will be available closer to the opening date.
