*** Even the title of Joseph Kesselring's play, so evocative of the mystery comedy genre, has passed into legend, spawning, in the process, one of Hollywood's classic hits, and still providing, to this day, fertile ground for amateur dramatic societies.

Now, BMDS have staged, for the second time around, a new version of `Arsenic and Old Lace', directed by Christine Barritt.

One of the immediate problems which arises is the fact that the play, set in Brooklyn in the 1940s, has itself dated: the most comic and preposterous aspect of the plot was the very suggestion that two elderly spinsters, renowned for their "pure kindness and absolute generosity'', could quietly poison off a series of lodger gentlemen and bury their bodies in the cellar.

Nowadays, this scenario is only too familiar, with far too many innocuous-looking characters claiming their 15 minutes of infamy for uncomfortably similar crimes.

Under these circumstances, if any vestige of credibility is to be maintained, it is even more essential that the social and geographic aura of the piece be scrupulously observed.

Director Barritt certainly achieved this in terms of her set designs and Veronica Lowry's period costumes, but was in deeper trouble with a cast who sported a motley assortment of accents, British prevailing.

One of the aims of Daylesford has always been to encourage new talent, so it was encouraging, in one sense, to see several novices acting in this production; the price paid, of course, is a quite startling unevenness in performance that is, if anything, accentuated by the elaborate and professional realism of the sets.

Christine Barritt, understandably anxious to keep the suspense mounting, tried to keep her cast moving and speaking at a vigorous pace. Unfortunately, the less experienced actors slipped all too easily into speech patterns which tended to throw away many of the punch-lines, and produced exaggerated movement which, at times, caricatured the very people they were playing.

The central role of nephew Mortimer Webster was a case in point: with greater economy of movement, Kelvin Hastings-Smith would have been more believable as the New York drama critic who finds in his aunts' home, a far more gripping murder plot than in any of the plays he has to review. As a beginner, however, he made a valiant -- perhaps too valiant -- effort to bring some zing back into a production which barrelled along with a series of minor climaxes rather than the steadily building momentum which is essential in a `murder mystery'.

The axiom that `less is more' was eloquently illustrated by Victoria Waddington in her leading role as aunt Abby Brewster. Professionally trained in England and now teaching drama here, she really carried this play. Her exquisitely honed voice and quietly aristocratic bearing brought out, as no one else was able to do, the full humour of the piece: with her nephew screaming that he's found a body in the window seat, it is almost worth the price of a ticket to hear her nonchalant reply, "Yes, we know''. In her biggest role to date, Victoria Waddington more than confirms an intriguing talent which should be much in demand in future.

She was well supported by Sheilagh Robinson as the incorrigible sister, Martha Brewster, and John Thompson gave a heartily comic portrayal as their brother Teddy. The fact that he thinks he is President Teddy Roosevelt and that as he digs in the cellar, he is actually carving out the Panama Canal adds plenty of merriment to the proceedings. Thompson made the most of all this, charging up and downstairs, blowing bugles and organising the lesser fry.

Adrian Barnaby took on the role of Jonathan Brewster, the sadistic brother whose sudden return to the family home brings an even more bizarre twist to the plot.

Of the smaller roles, Stuart Doyale produced a splendidly Germanic accent for his role as the doctor, and Mortimer's fiancee was played with verve and fluency by Lisabet Outerbridge, a relative newcomer who has a fine speaking voice and moves well.

As always, Alec Foster was outstanding in the cameo role of a would-be lodger.

Unfortunately, other cast members playing small roles in this increasingly convoluted plot were, towards the end, struggling rather in the manner of a bad school play to deliver lines which apparently had little meaning for them and, as a consequence, even less for the audience.

This production is not up to the standard we usually associate with BMDS.

Daylesford, of course, is (or was) supposed to be experimental for both on and backstage participants. It is unfortunate that such a well known play was chosen as a vehicle for such a mixed bag of talents.

Patricia Calnan REVIEW REV