I always enjoy watching college shows of budding and aspiring students, not because I know some of the talented young performers who have started to set the foundations of their art in the hope of a career in the same, but because they are the ones who really give it their all with oozles of passion. The Hammond School’s production of Broadway’s longest running American musical Chicago shows just that in its professional yet minimalistic portrayal.
‘Treasure Island’, performed by the Lamproom Theatre Company’s youngest performers, (‘Lamplyters - ages 5-11), is a musical suitable for all the family.
From the moment Jim Hawkins discovers a treasure map in Billy Bones’ sea chest, his life is changed forever. In an attempt to escape poverty (and pirates) he becomes a cabin boy on The Hispaniola, a ship bound for Treasure Island. Jim meets many colourful characters on his journey, including Long John Silver, the one-legged ship’s cook… it turns out Jim hasn’t escaped the pirates after all!
Starlight Express is not one of the easiest shows to stage and roller skating is not usually high up on the skills list of your average actor so it makes it a joy to watch when this show is done well. What is more of a joy is that when it is performed by an amateur company as I saw tonight at the Civic Theatre in Rotherham from Gillian Banks Theatre School.
To call this show a satire doesn't really do it justice at all; in fact it quite literally takes the piss (sorry) out of not just the Capitalist System and the Justice System, but also out of the Musical Theatre genre itself. It is a parody, but an excellent one; since it is not JUST funny and tongue-in-cheek, as say something like, 'A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum' is; there's also a very dark side to this show and an obvious message.
Following a recent impressive £6 million refurbishment, York Theatre Royal is once again bringing delight and fulfillment to the people of York and beyond, offering a rich and diverse programme of creative activity for some 270 years. After having the privilege of attending a sneak preview ahead of its official reopening earlier this year, I have eagerly awaited my first official visit to sample some of York’s finest musical theatre.
After regretfully arriving later than the advertised start time, I had the pleasure of attending Macclesfield College’s end of year production, in which students presented a parody of the classic hit musical Mamma Mia - ‘Here I Go Again’ - featuring the music of Swedish pop group ABBA.
Once I realised that the theatre space is located in the Academy site of the campus rather than the college itself, I got inside for the interval, for which I must apologise (and did verbally) to the cast and production team. I was however told that I missed a rather long technical problem in which cast members had to ‘ad lib’ for the period, in the absence of recorded music but this will be referred to and addressed further in.
First published in 1862 the novel by Victor Hugo called Les Misérables was not only classed as one of the greatest novels of the 19th Century it has also been classed as one of the most successful musicals of all time due to its adaption to the stage by Alain Boublil and Claude Michel Schonberg nearly 31 years ago. Les Misérables has never been licensed for the amateur stage other than an edited ‘Schools Edition’ which tonight was performed by the talented ReAct Academy Of Theatre Arts at The Civic Theatre, Oswaldtwistle.
A Cleverly Written Piece Superbly Delivered
The Lima Syndrome is a new play by local playwright Mark Murphy, produced in-house by Lantern Theatre Liverpool and directed by their own Margaret Connell.
Firstly some background facts: Stockholm Syndrome is a psychological phenomenon in which hostages express empathy and sympathy and have positive feelings towards their captors. The converse to this is Lima Syndrome in which abductors develop sympathy for their hostages.
Presented by Oldham's own Amateur Dramatic and Operatic Society, 'New Music', and with a cast of mostly juveniles, this was bound to prove a popular choice for Oldham's Musical lovers.
First night nerves were definitely in evidence, and the cast really didn't seem to get fully into their stride until the second act, but the one thing which I can wholeheartedly applaud them on was their patience and professionalism when dealing with a less than capable technical department.
Nestled away amongst a housing estate in Castleford, West Yorkshire lays Airedale Academy, a secondary school with adjacent Sixth Form, boasting the latest state of the art 300-seat theatre – The Phoenix Theatre. The Cast – as the performers are referred to both in advertising and in general – have chosen some rather brave musicals to bring to a small West Yorkshire Academy. Most recently having performed West End hit Miss Saigon, their recent offering, Billy Elliot - a musical with a high level of adult language and scenes of violence is another daring and challenging choice.
Bolton Little Theatre brought laughter to the stage this evening with a presentation of Mr Wonderful, a play written by James Robson and directed by Steve Gill , acted by a cast of four to an almost capacity audience.
The stage is divided into three sections featuring a bar and the bedroom and lounge of the Green's residence. There is music played during the blackout of moving from one scene to another and it being reset, although this works smoothly I feel takes a little longer than necessary.
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