THREE popular school teachers soon to be departing classrooms on the island will be taking to the stage to offer theatre-lovers an amazing touch of Shakespeare.
Martyn Wharrie, Jacob Rusling and Rory Adamson currently work at the British School of Bahrain (BSB) which appears to be going through its own Shakespearean tragedy with an unprecedented turnover of members of staff this summer. The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged) is an amalgamation of all of Shakespeare’s 37 plays, performed in roughly 90 minutes by the three ‘crazy actors’. “Whilst it is fast-paced, it provides a taste of Shakespeare’s plays, in an entertaining manner rather than the dry way in which many of us came across Shakespeare at school,” said Marina Tadayon, who will be co-directing the show with Jenny Falcus. For Manama Theatre Club (MTC), The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged) is not new, having first been cast in 2006. It has been re-auditioned and re-cast many times over the years, but never fully got going due to its expat casts moving on. As both Jacob and Martyn are leaving Bahrain imminently, it was decided that it had to be staged now, or forever hold its peace! It also happens to coincide with Shakespeare’s 450th birthday. The play, written by Adam Long, Daniel Singer and Jess Winfield, will be staged by the MTC, a section of the British Club of Bahrain, from June 10-13, at the club’s premises in Um Al Hassam. The trio first met in the BSB staffroom. Martyn teaches English, Jacob, drama, and, Rory, the theatre club’s chairman, handled economics, business studies and accounting. Martyn and Jacob both auditioned and were cast in MTC’s production of JB Priestley’s An Inspector Calls in April, 2013. Martyn also took on the role of Slurp, the palace drain-cleaner, in the club’s pantomime, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Marina added: “They have brought fresh ideas and enthusiasm to MTC, and as for Martyn, he also has a great singing voice. “This will be both Martyn’s and Jacob’s last show with MTC before they leave to pastures new in the summer. There would have been many future opportunities for involvement with MTC were they to stay in Bahrain for longer, but alas, it is time to bid them farewell. They will be missed.” Rory, 47, from Bristol in the UK, has been in Bahrain on and off since 1994. He first came to the island when he was transferred from PricewaterhouseCoopers, London, in 1994. He has subsequently set up and run a number of businesses in Bahrain before his recent stint into the education sector. He is married to Marina and they have two children, Zaki, nine, and Hannah, seven. Rory’s first show with MTC was back in 1995 when he played Jack in The Importance of Being Earnest. He has since been involved in most of the productions in one way or another, building sets, producing, directing or acting. He has been chairman since 2006. He recently appeared as Frank in Educating Rita. Other recent roles include Paul Sheldon in Misery, Vince Steel in Satin ’n’ Steel and Basil Fawlty in Fawlty Towers. Rory has also directed a number of productions including An Inspector Calls, Be My Baby, See How They Run, Ladies’ Day and Bugsy Malone. Off stage and out of the classroom, Rory completed the 2009 Ironman competition in the UK and is hoping to compete in the inaugural Challenge Bahrain half-ironman triathlon this coming December. Fellow Brit Martyn, 56, a staunch Hull City fan, made quite an impression when he first arrived on the island in August 2012. He was sent home to change after turning up at the British Club wearing his football jersey instead of smart attire for a dinner featuring his hero and former Tigers manager Peter Taylor, who at the time was head coach of Bahrain. He also attracted a huge following of music-loving fans after competing over eight weeks in the Kicks Karaoke contest last November and winning the competition. Married to Kathy with a daughter, Georgia, about to start studying Politics and Philosophy at Hull University, he will be leaving in August to teach in aboriginal communities in Australia for the Northern Territory (NT) Remote Teaching Service. Kathy is Australian and visited NT once and ‘fell in love with it’. “Different challenges, who knows,” Martyn said. “Romeo and Juliet in the bush - no pun intended! “But one of my biggest regrets about leaving is not being able to be part of a musical which is on the horizon.” Jacob, 27, also British, came to Bahrain two years ago after a spell as a special needs teacher in London. He will be returning to the English capital this summer to ‘complete some training’ and said: “It’s great fun being part of such a wonderful club. Theatre is a two-way relationship between audience and performers and the Bahrain public certainly play their role.” Tickets to the show cost BD5 for members and BD7 for non-members, with donations made to charitable causes, and are available from the club’s reception and The Great Deli Café, Najibi Centre, Saar.
