Penultimate Stop: A Doddery Mrs Dixon

With only three performances to go, Threshold is nearing the end of its furtive journey. And with three five-star reviews and selling out audiences, you’ll have to work hard to get kidnapped out of the city. And what’s rare for the fringe is that we’ve even had people returning to see the show for a second time to follow a different character. With five characters to choose from, if you go every day from today you’ll almost get the complete experience, so that is my challenge to you!

However, in true 19;29 cryptic style, there are some characters in Threshold whose story will never get told. On top of the eight-strong cast who have been rehearsing for the past couple of months, upon arriving at our secret site we were joined by some local residents who play the supporting roles, including a fiddle player without whom no
Scottish pageant could be complete. But most of the supporting cast fill the roles of our tight-lipped servants because you certainly can’t have a party at the Hunter household without staff. And our heads of staff are played by two veterans of the local dramatic scene (Lucy and Carole) who are probably the most menacing aspect of the entire show. Each performance seems to enhance their commitment to their integral (albeit non-speaking) roles and yesterday Carole stumbled off after the bus as if she couldn’t bare the show to be over.

Carole, whose character is called Mrs Dixon (woe betide Mr Dixon), subsequently explained her reasoning for following the departing audience – naturally, Mrs Dixon has Parkinsons. I know what you’re thinking; the two things didn’t immediately correlate in my mind either. But, according to Carole, people with Parkinsons are actually the first out in a fire: when a trauma arises the disability is momentarily overcome and the potential energy that has built up is released giving you a burst of high-speed movement. And if you’re wondering whether you can really trust Carole’s knowledge of Parkinsons, I can assure you she’s a very reliable source as not only is she a steadfast thespian but she also is the proud owner of an MBE for her services to nursing. Now please tell me where else in the fringe you can find a cast list that contains honours after the name? If only I had known about her medical skills when I hit my head…

At least you can come to Threshold knowing you’re in safe, and royally commended, hands. But it had better be a genuine injury – you don’t want to mess with Mrs Dixon, with a stare to rival Medusa’s you know there’ll be consequences.

Yours submissively,

Tom