The classic 1970s sitcom Are you being served? comes to the stage thanks to FM Productions. Josanne Cassar finds out more

For those too young to have watched it, the British sitcom Are you being served? used to be a favourite staple on Maltese television. It is all about the goings on at Grace Brothers, a department store, where non-stop comic situations arise between the staff and the customers.

The stage version follows the motley crew as they prepare for a sale of German goods and then depart for a staff holiday in Spain. Hilarity ensues on their stay in the tropics, as they encounter everything from a Spanish crumpet to randy revolutionaries with everything intact but their modesty.

Producer Edward Mercieca says he chose this play following the success of last year’s Allo Allo.

“We were actually asked by many people to do Are you being served? We enjoyed Allo so much we thought it would be a good wheeze to do it!”

Edward believes that it’s more than just nostalgia for this specific era. “I think there is a nostalgia for all that was good in the past, especially the 60s and 70s. I challenge anyone who says they do not feel nostalgic for shows like Are you being served?, Allo Allo, Dad’s Army, Faulty Towers, Get Smart and so may others that brought many a smile to many a face!”

Polly March will be directing this production and she agrees that the audience appreciation of Allo Allo had a lot to do with the choice.

“I don’t know whether it’s about a 70’s nostalgia – but certainly there is – or seems to be – an audience for a much loved TV comedy series. Even if younger ones don’t remember it, their parents and grandparents certainly do! And we had a lot of young people in the audience for Allo Allo, so perhaps there is a new audience for these shows....”

Compared to today’s scripts, the double entendres will sound incredibly tame – but does she feel that some audiences actually prefer theatre when it is not so “in yer face”?

“You know, that whole area of double entendres is interesting. Some episodes of the TV series were shown this year in the UK, over the Christmas and New Year period, and one of the surviving actors, Nicholas Smith, said ‘I was surprised at how filthy the show was, and could not imagine how we got away with it’...!

They come from an era of greater innocence, certainly, and in a way, double entendres require a particular climate to work. A time of less licence to say and do almost anything, to anyone; so that a way around the lack of freedom would have been not quite to say the ‘rude’ bits, but to play around with the intention and manner of saying the lines to produce laughter. And double entendres have been the spring and mainstay of British farce for a very long time – and I’m sure in other cultures as well.

As for an audience preference for something not quite so combative and assertive in texts, that is probably true. Having said that, it is a bit patronising to say that those who would come to see this show would not choose to go and see what can be described as ‘in yer face’ theatre. We have a range of needs; sometimes to be challenged and made aware of certain facets of society that are not so easy to bear; and sometimes to sit back, unchallenged, and laugh a lot. And why should that be incompatible with that other need? I am perfectly capable of enjoying both types of theatre and I am not alone in that.”

Polly March will not only be directing, but will be taking on the role of one of the most colourful characters in the sitcom the pink-haired Mrs Slocombe.

How difficult is it to act and direct in the same play – who directs you?

“Ah, now you have put your finger on it! I have never played such a large role and directed at the same time. If I achieve anything, it has been achieved entirely through the patience and support of the cast and stage management, who have been extraordinarily supportive. They make allowances for me hurling myself to the front to have a look at them, then hurling myself back into roughly the same position as I was before.....while they still somehow manage to maintain their concentration (well, almost always...!)

From the first rehearsal I have asked the actors to give me notes; I respect every member of the cast and their notes are usually extremely helpful. And during the last week, another director will come in and watch, and give me notes.

When I direct, I like to spend a long time working on the text, the characters, their stories and the journey they travel during the performance. This is not really required in much depth with a comedy of this type. So I do some choreography...’no, you can’t be there......you’re blocking the view of the lifts.......go somewhere else!’ (Always a very helpful note to give an actor...) and working on comic timing and stresses, which I am very hot on. Comic timing is a gift; it can be learned, to a certain extent, and it has to be worked at.”

The casting for this production is spot-on and is probably a director’s dream: Edward Mercieca as Mr Rumbold, Ray Calleja as Mr Humphries, Julia Calvert as Miss Brahms, Colin fitz as Mr Lucas, Paul Barnes as Capt. Peacock and Terry Shaw as Mr. Grainger, as well as Snits as Bernardo and Jean Pierre Agius as Cesar. I ask Polly whether she immediately had these actors in mind when it came to choosing the right people for the various roles.

“We have been so lucky with our cast, and the fact that they were available at this time. And no, I went into the casting with a totally open mind, and was recommended to various actors whom I didn’t know, by others, and some who had expressed an interest, and some, whom, when I started thinking about the roles, sprang naturally to mind. So, it has been a matter of supreme good fortune that all these actors were available and interested.”

Comedy, they say, is all in the timing, especially in a well-known play such as this, what is your biggest challenge to get the comic timing just right?

“Comedy is so very much harder to play than tragedy. And the timing is absolutely critical. One move, one gesture, one mis-stressed syllable, and the laugh is lost. I think the most important job I can do is to keep reminding the actors of exactly what it is in a particular line that is funny. It is not always obvious – the essence of good comedy is to de-construct a line, work out what element of it is ‘the laugh’ and then work out how to play it. It sounds very technical, and to a certain extent it is, especially if an actor has not done much comedy. But as I said, it is very hard work, making people laugh, and it is the homework done on each and every line that will reap the reward of hearing an audience roar with laughter – just on the raising of an eyebrow. Oh, the joy! That’s why we do it. And that is why this great cast are going to give the audience a thoroughly entertaining evening, taking a trip down memory lane with ‘I’m free!’ and ‘I am unanimous in that’....not to mention Young Mr Grace and ‘You’ve all done very well!’........ I hope that we will – and that an enjoyable evening is had by all.”

The shows run on 12, 13, 14; 19, 20, 21 February at the Manoel Theatre. Booking is now open on 21246389 or online at ww.teatrumanoel.com.mt.