The saddleworth Players present Tom Jones “A ribald and rowdy romp. Directed by Roger Holland, the play runs from May 19th – 26th at the Millgate Arts Centre in Delph.
“The play by Joan Macalpine, faithful to the ’18 books’ Fielding wrote on ‘Tom Jones – the History of a Foundling’, is a ribald and rowdy romp through the mansions and taverns of Georgian England.
Poor Tom, he just can’t seem to stay away from romantic involvements! Henry Fielding’s classic novel “Tom Jones, the History of a Foundling” is as hilarious today as it was when it was written in the 18th century! It is the story of a baby (Tom) who was abandoned at birth in the bed of Squire Allworthy. The Squire takes the child and rears him as his own, yet there is no secret that he is a foundling. He’s given the surname of Jones because the household believes that his mother is Jenny Jones, maid to Squire Allworthy’s sister.
Tom Jones isn’t a bad guy, but boys just want to have fun! Nearly two and a half centuries after its publication, the adventures of the rambunctious and randy Tom Jones still makes for great reading. I’m not in the habit of using words like bawdy or rollicking, but if you look them up in the dictionary, you should see a picture of this book.
It says a great deal for “Tom Jones” that after more than 250 years, it’s still as fresh and alive as it was when Henry Fielding wrote it. Squire Allworthy, out of pity for the foundling, raises him as his own son. Tom grows up, perhaps the most randy, rollicking, and riotous young man in literature! The ladies can’t seem to keep their hands off him! He is perpetually in some kind of trouble; but his heart is in the right place even if he thinks with the wrong head most of the time. He’s kind, decent, affectionate and generous to a fault. He’s also in love …
Henry Fielding’s fallen hero bed-hops his way out of a good home and almost into a hangman’s noose, via a series of misadventures and misunderstandings. For perhaps the first time in English literature, a prose account of bawdy escapades made its way on to the literary scene. The book is full of melodramatic hilarity and Dickensian coincidences, but by the end, “all’s well that ends well!”
Our 2012 Tom Jones promises to be just as memorable as the 1971 production (see over) – don’t miss it!
For further details and booking information click here.
