Neil Brand Presents Laurel and Hardy NNF 2023
Its asking a lot to expect Laurel and Hardy to entertain a modern audience in quite the same way as they did a h
NNF
It’s a well-rehearsed criticism of the Norwich and Norfolk Festival that it's mostly Norwich and very little Norfolk. In these straightened times it’s perhaps understandable that the festival chooses to focus on city audiences, but its nonetheless pleasing when it dares to venture out into the wilds of the county. It couldn't get much further, at least not without straying into Suffolk, than the Corn Hall in Diss, where two contrasting events took place.
The Corn Hall's ample performance space allied to its cinematic capabilities, all housed within a handsome building that predates the duo’s earliest films, made it the perfect showcase for the silent films of Stan and Ollie. Introduced by composer and musician Neil Brand, his boyish enthusiasm for the duo won over an audience that must, surely, have wondered if there were still belly laughs to be had from films that are over a hundred years old. Brand was an avuncular host, but a man of few words, preferring to let the images and his piano do the persuading.
First up we got a peek at what the two of them were up to before Hal Roach cleverly spotted how well they would work as a pair. We got to see Stan fighting with long-time collaborator James Finlayson, while Ollie demonstrated his unrivalled ability to prat fall. With their screen personas as yet unformed it was a fascinating insight into what might have been, had they not met. Even when we do see them together the characters are not yet fully formed. There was fun to be had with kilts, laughing gas, rogue waiters and itinerant cross-dressing tramps, but it wasn't quite the Stan And Ollie they would eventually become. I was reminded of Morecambe and Wise before Eddie Braden wrote for them - funny, but not that funny. We had to wait until after the interval to see classic Laurel and Hardy.
In the break, I took the opportunity to take a peek at the Corn Hall’s other contribution to the festival, an art exhibition of Gemma Correll’s cartoons. Her work addresses her own struggles with anxiety and depression, but does so with optimistic good humour. It’s clearly her intention to break down the stigma that bedevils the issue of mental health, something she does with self-deprecating candour. The Corn Hall is unusual in housing a purpose built art exhibition space – I can’t bring to mind another local venue like it – and often hosts interesting and provocative work. Correll’s cartoons are up until June, and I would urge anyone to take the time to see them.
After the break, it was back to business - Big Business in this case - a twenty minute short that was an early outing for what Brand called the reciprocal destruction routine, whereby Stan and Ollie destroyed James Finlayson’s house, while he destroyed their car. Shown in full, while accompanied by Brand on the piano, this showing of an immaculately restored classic gave a delightful feel for what it must have been like to see this film as intended, in a communal venue, listening to the laughter of others. It was followed by the equally entertaining Liberty, which placed Stan and Ollie in jeopardy, atop a skeleton of a newly constructed skyscraper. Obviously indebted to the work of Harold Lloyd, it offered less of what we have come to expect from the pair, but was nonetheless an entertaining romp.
Its perhaps asking a lot to expect Laurel and Hardy to entertain a modern audience in quite the same way as they did a hundred years ago, but it was remarkable how genuinely funny and fresh their routines were. Helped in no small part by Neil Brand’s infectious enthusiasm and skilled accompaniment, this was about as close as you could ever hope to get to seeing their films as intended, an experience that was entertaining, but also surprisingly life affirming.
