Thirty years before The Office, New Zealand had its own workplace comedy. To mark half a century since its first performance, Phoenix Theatre proudly presents Roger Hall’s smash hit Glide Time, the play that inspired the TV classic Gliding On. Step back into a time when office chairs squeaked, memos were handwritten, and the tea break was sacred. This beloved Kiwi comedy brings the quirks of 1970s public service life to the stage with razor-sharp wit and painfully familiar characters.
Synopsis
Set in the stores branch of a Wellington government department in 1976, Glide Time follows a small team of public servants across five weeks of ordinary working life, told in four acts each set within a precise window of a single working day. The Boss is leaving for a promotion, his job is advertised, and the question of who will replace him quietly drives the tension between colleagues. Personal lives press in from the edges: a son who has left home, a homesick wife who is falling apart, an affair conducted in the lunch hour, a new kid absorbing everything.
Across the four acts the stakes escalate. Jim makes a significant blunder, misses out on the promotion, and by the final act stands up and announces he has resigned, throws the signing-on book out the window, and phones the Director, who has never once visited their floor, to invite him down for a drink. The Director accepts, and everyone panics and flees. John quietly retrieves Jim's resignation letter from the mail room and tears it up. Jim watches him do it and says nothing.
The play ends as it began: ordinary people in an ordinary room, the system unchanged, the clock still ticking.
Sunday 24 May, 1:00 - 3:00pm, 18 Richards Avenue
Wednesday 27 May, 7:00-9:00pm, 18 Richards Ave
Role descriptions and ages are taken from the original script and are there as a guide. Final casting decisions are made with the whole ensemble in mind, so we encourage anyone who's interested to come along regardless of age or whether you feel you're a perfect fit on paper.
JOHN - about 30, Works hard and efficiently, though pretends not to. Quite well educated, well spoken, with a quick wit. Usually wears quite a good suit.
JIM - 46–47, A fairly typical public servant who is never going to make it very far. Fairly uncouth, with a Kiwi accent. Old cardigan under sports jacket. Quite a boozer. Would have voted National for the sake of the All Blacks.
HUGH - mid-40s, A Welshman, though not with a very pronounced accent. Has been in New Zealand only 3½ years. Came out for the family's sake rather than his own ambitions.
BERYL - early–mid 30s, intelligent but not well educated, having been stuck at home looking after her old mother. Content to accept the job day by day.
MICHAEL - 17, His hair is unfashionably short for the time. This is his first job and he is rather shy and very naive. But after a few weeks he grows in confidence and begins to blossom.
THE BOSS - mid-50s, Short, fussy, worried. All this reflected in his movements. Wears an RSA badge and is very conservative. Worries about his superannuation. A stickler for detail.
WALLY - 40–55,Fairly uncouth. Enjoys wielding the power that administration paperwork gives him.
Auditions are run as a group workshop, so there's nothing to prepare beforehand. If you'd like to get a feel for the material ahead of time, perusal copies of the script and audition pieces are available on request.
Phoenix Theatre is a community theatre organisation, and every role, on stage and off, is filled by volunteers.