Gently Does It

Early in the first act of Gently Does It, Anthony Oliver kills his first wife. In the last scene of the second act, he kills himself. In between these deaths, Janet Green's new play displays an utter lack of originality; in fact, only some expert character portrayals save it from dying with the actors.

Billed as a thriller, Gently Does It scares no one. And a steady stream of undisguised hints wash away any trace of suspense. Against a background of urban England, Oliver, as Edward Bare, plays a limey opportunist who, for a chance to travel abroad, kills one wife and marries a second. A sharp voice for his uneducated but shrewd conceit, the facial expressions which change with the varying moods of flattery and hate, and the complete lack of human warmth all combine to make Bare a wonderful villain. It is this performance which is primarily responsible for keeping the play moving, for he is on the stage almost all the time.

Phyllis Povah plays the first wife, and as a simple trusting old lady she is quite good, unless one believes that all simple, trusting old ladies are overacting their parts. Mable Taylor, playing Emmie the family servant, is perhaps the outstanding actress in the show; she is provincial, she is hunched over, she is always properly subservient and sufficiently stupid.

As Bare's second wife, Brenda Bruce always stays one step ahead of her husband. A cute, frilly looking blonde, her Monroeian bust almost obscures an ability to handle a bank account as well as a man.

But people in mysteries are there mainly to be killed and these individual performances cannot save an unimaginative story. Even the sharpest, most perceptive acting does not eliminate a need for a new plot, snappy dialogue, and more action; Gently Does It needs a good solid shove from behind.