A Love Affair at Galleon Theatre

Galleon Theatre Group Inc. presenting a South Australian première for the Adelaide company’s end of year production. A Love Affair is a comedy, written by Jerry Mayer - an actor and writer who has penned works for such well loved sitcoms as Bewitched, MASH, The Bob Newhart Show and The Mary Tyler Moore Show.

Galleon welcomes back director Lesley Reed. Lesley directed Galleon Theatre Group’s 2018 production of Incorruptible which won the 2017/18 Best Comedy Award at the Adelaide Theatre Guide ‘Curtain Call’ Awards.

Can financial reversals ruin or even reinforce a marriage? What if you could talk to your younger self or, indeed, talk to your older self, about what's ahead or behind you on the rollercoaster of marriage?  

Spanning a period from 1991, back to the early 1950s, then forward again to the 60s, 70s and 80s and eventually returning to a stressful moving day in 1991, Jimmy and Alice Diamond relive their roller coaster marriage. Spiced with love, regrets, financial downturns and sprinkled with sexy ‘evenings’, the reliving is also flavoured with ‘helpful’ advice between the older and younger versions of the couple.

The clever script construction of this play allows for some poignant, brutally honest and amusing insights into decades of love, pain and laughter.

Lesley said, ‘Casting this clever romantic comedy was tricky, as the four lead actors are required to play the couple as older and younger versions of themselves, and they occasionally appear on stage at the same time, flipping backward and forward in time and so breaking normal “time” conventions.’

Lindsay Dunn and Lindy Le Cornu bring many years of comedic experience to their characterisations of the “older” versions of Alice and Jimmy, with Nick Endenburg and Shanna Ransley bringing their youthful exuberance to the “younger” versions.

The 5^th member of the cast is Leanne Robinson, who has the challenge of playing 5 very different women who influence Alice and Jimmy’s long marriage.

Lesley is delighted with the cast. ‘They are all doing an amazing job, as they grapple with the complexities of matching mannerisms,’ she said. ‘Sparks certainly fly when “older” meets “younger” on stage at various points during the play.’

Lesley believes audiences will watch this play and see moments in a marriage they recognise, from both the male and female perspective; quietly chuckle at times and see moments where they will laugh out loud.

Past productions of the play have received overwhelmingly good reviews:

“Jerry Mayer has gone and done it again Absolutely side-splitting humour…The sexual innuendos are witty, the business of ageing is handled with great humour and understanding, and the human condition is explored with a fresh eye. This is a marvellous evening in the theatre – you can’t do better!” The Good Life

“Steeped in the stuff that makes the world go round and spiced with the laughter that keeps it whirling, it’s a memory play with an ardent present and a promising future that speaks to the youth in us as loudly as it does to the well-over-thirtysomething in the rest of us.” Theatre News

As Theatre News went on to say, “Expect some afterthoughts, some forethoughts, some insights, some ah-hahs, some tears, but mostly a lot of laughter when the past meets the future in the present, in an affair you’ll remember.” ​

A LOVE AFFAIR

By Jerry Mayer

Directed by Lesley Reed

DATES & BOOKINGS

When?

Thursday 20, Friday 21, Saturday 22 October 2022 at 7.30 pm

Sunday 23 October 2022 at 2.00pm

Thursday 27, Friday 28, Saturday 29 October 2022 at 7.30 pm

Where?

Domain Theatre Marion Cultural Centre, 287 Diagonal Road, Oaklands Park, adjacent to Westfield Marion where parking is available.

How to book?

Visit www.galleon.org.au to check out all of the booking details.