From radio to the stage, Lollipop Lane |has travelled a very long way, writes Latoya Newman.
THE POPULAR Lollipop Lane radio drama reaches a milestone this month when it launches as a stage serial which will subsequently be broadcast on the Tape Aids for the Blind’s DStv channel.
Scripted by Clinton Marius and directed by Caroline Smart, the new series will be staged as a bi-monthly theatrical radio comedy, performed before an audience. The series will take forward the story of the whacky gallery of folk from the block of flats where the lift doesn’t quite go to the top floor.
Earlier this year, the makers tested the waters for a stage life for Lollipop Lane when they staged the characters in a one-weekend comedy show. With that event proving popular, they have moved on to a more concrete plan for the future.
The series’ first episode, sub-titled The Big Biscuit Bake-Off, is to be presented at Durban’s Catalina Theatre on Wilson’s Wharf from October 24 to 26, it was announced.
It stars Pauline Dalais (as the brick auntie, Mrs Singh Sing) and Sivani Chinappan (as the more timid Mrs Singh Song), with Kajal Bagwandeen, Hamish Kyd, Mpume Mthombeni, Tom Read, Mayuri Naidu and Smart also featuring.
In an interview with Tonight, Smart explained that the big move was made possible with support from the KZN Performing Arts Trust.
“The idea to retain the radio element of Lollipop Lane came from a notion I had of revisiting the presentations of the hugely popular Springbok Radio comedy productions that came from Durban – Tom Meehan’s Men from the Ministry, Father, Dear Father and The Navy Lark. These productions were recorded in front of an audience at the Durban SABC studios, then edited and sent to Joburg to broadcast. However, the productions often ‘went on the road’, giving performances at venues outside Durban and further afield.
“It is exactly reviving that process. In this case, I see this project doing three things. First of all, reviving the magic that is radio. I consider radio the purest form of acting because there is nowhere to hide – no costumes, no lights, no set. All it is, is you and your understanding of your character. And also, there is such a lot of fun and fascination over how the sound effects are made because it encourages the imagination. And for the Lollipop Lane serials we’ll do a lot of that,” she explained.
Smart said that the theatre experience for the serials would be a complete one, with the cast in full costume: “You will see everybody wearing what they would need to to portray their different characters. At the moment we will stage at the Catalina Theatre every two months. The exciting fact for me as well is that it will also take on another life by being streamed through the Tape Aids for the Blind’s DStv channel. So it has a double life, if you like – it has a performance life and it has an actual radio life.
“I’m hoping audiences will find it as fascinating as anybody that you introduce to radio drama. One is revising what was absolutely a rock- solid form of performance. The past radio comedy shows played to absolute full capacity when they staged. So I’m very excited about it,” she explained.
Six years ago Lollipop Lane’s peculiar residents of a block of flats won the hearts of thousands of radio listeners when the first episode of the series aired on Lotus FM.
Within just two years of it airing, it approached its 500th episode, garnering thousands of fans and quickly moving on to become a fully- fledged radio soapie. At the time, Lollipop Lane was acknowledged as playing a key role in the re-birth of radio dramas.
• The Big Biscuit Bake-Off stages at the Catalina Theatre on Friday, October 24 and Saturday, 25 at 7.30pm, with a 2.30pm Sunday matinee on October 26. Tickets : R100 at Computicket: 0861 915 8000, or online at www.computicket.com. Early booking is advised.