DICKENS, THE MASTER STORYTELLER

Dorset County Museum, Dorchester

CAPTURING the essence of a prolific novelist’s work presents a challenge to any actor but Kevin Hanssen has succeeding in doing so with astonishing skill in his one-man show in which he tells three stories from the fictional works of Charles Dickens.

In his excerpt from A Tale of Two Cities, the division of the classes is brought into sharp focus as Kevin captures the contemptuous behaviour of one of the French aristocrats in the novel as his carriage runs over and kills a small child, highlighting the author’s lifelong dedication to the treatment of the impoverished classes.

The short story, The Signalman, is Kevin’s second choice to dramatise and the tale is one of Dickens lesser known works with its ghostly plot which is beautifully enacted with emotional depth and humanity, while Kevin’s third drama is the famous finale of A Christmas Carol, told with energy and humour that captures the flavour of the author’s best loved novel.

With minimum props and subtle background musical effects, all the attention during the evening is focussed on the characters drawn by this great Victorian novelist and Kevin Hanssen’s sensitive performance pays handsome tribute to him with his fine acting talents.

The production, presented under the auspices of the Somerleigh Players, moves to Frampton Village Hall on Friday September 30 and Poundbury’s Brownsword Hall on Saturday October 1, each of which richly deserve to be played to full houses.

MARION COX