NODA REVIEWS

42nd Street

Thanks for the kind invitation to review the latest production from Youth of Banbury Operatic Society (YOBOS) the ever popular 42nd Street. It’s always a pleasure to visit this thriving youth group. I often wonder if there is something in the water in the Banbury area which helps to create such a wealth of young talent and enthusiasm for ‘live’ theatre. Then I realise it’s the dedication and commitment of the ‘older’ theatre lovers who inspire and encourage the amazing youth in the area.

YOBOS have produced some wonderful shows in my time as Regional Representative and this production continued in the same vein. What an uplifting and wonderful experience it was and thank you for giving me the opportunity to see this fantastic production.

Principals:

Heading this knockout principal line-up was Misty Griffin as the stage struck Peggy Sawyer. This was a brilliant portrayal of this well-known character to which Misty brought a freshness and naivety that made the character seem very real. Tremendous delivery of the vocals and libretto and excellent dancing skills made this an outstanding performance. Misty made you just root for Peggy. Her interaction with the other characters was so natural and believable. You captured Peggy beautifully Misty. Many congratulations!!

Alfie Blackwell made an engaging Billy Lawlor with lots of bravado and cheeky chirpiness. His dancing was amazing as I think I’m right in saying he has not been dancing for very long. I liked his interaction with fellow actors and his affection for Peggy was nicely played.  Alfie also got the humour and self-congratulatory nature of Billy very effectively. I liked his name ‘announcement’ to the audience – very amusing. Well done!

Dorothy Brock the aging diva was beautifully portrayed in a mature and well-judged performance by Lauren Barlow. She captured the hard edged and pithy nature of the ‘diva’ but showed great warmth to Peggy in the dressing room scene. Her number About A Quarter To Nine was delivered perfectly. I also liked her vulnerability in the hotel scenes as she searched for Pat and her distain for Abner was well handled. This was a most memorable performance with excellent diction and strong vocals. Super stuff!

Connor Marron gave another memorable and very believable performance as Julian Marsh the famous Broadway director trying to revive a flagging career with a new show – Pretty Lady. This was a performance full of energy and the characterisation was spot on!  Connor has had many lead roles and his experience really shone through. A very watchable performance with some super sequences with Peggy – notably when he’s trying to inject more ‘passion’ into her ‘performance’. This was very funny! Again strong vocals and good diction with a well maintained accent made for a stand-out performance. Well done Connor!

I really liked Jack Sharkey as Dorothy’s love interest – Pat Denning. This was a mature and thoughtful interpretation of this character. His affection for Dorothy really shone through and he looked very good on stage too. Clear diction and an excellent (though under-used) vocal delivery rounded off this very good performance. Well done!

Chloe Reilly and Ciaran Mates worked well as a team as the song writing duo Maggie Jones and Bert Barry. There was some good but brief comedy exchanges and while Maggie has a more prominent role being one of the dancers and leading the number in the café scene Ciaran was always around and keeping very much in character. Chloe made a believable non-nonsense Maggie with some good comic timing and excellent dancing.  Her gusty brief but memorable rendition of Shadows On The Wall was hilarious! The interactions in their Shuffle Off To Buffalo wedding scene number was very funny. Well done to you both!

The other principal dancers and named parts – Keeley Thompson as Annie, Natalie Hunt as Phyllis, Lorraine, played by Katie Crowther, Zara Walton as Gladys, Caitlin Gold as Ethel and Diane played by Izzy Palmer all worked beautifully together with some great comedy exchanges (I loved the girls’ eye-rolling as naïve Peggy tells them her experiences with ‘boys’ during the café scene) and some fine well co-ordinated ‘tapping’. Great stuff! Well done to you all for some lovely character acting. Take care not to speak lines too quickly – pace is important but so is clarity.

Will Healy is becoming a very proficient comedy actor and his role as Dorothy’s sponsor and dare I say it - sugar daddy - Abner Dillon was very well played with some excellent comedic timing and a very believable characterisation. I liked the gruffly delivered American drawl it matched perfectly with Abner’s personality.  I really think his wonderful costume and make up (complete with grey wig and large moustache) helped Will to really get into the ‘character’. Very well done!

Alice Colmer gave a strong performance as Andie the dance captain. Usually played as a male character the casting as a female really worked. Alice demonstrated some excellent dancing skills and brought that gritty edge to the part which makes the ‘company’ work that much harder. Well done Alice!

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Supporting Cast:

The principals were strongly supported by a large number of the company undertaking smaller roles and one liners. Notably, Ben Pattinson, in a number of roles including the Doctor who delivers the bad news about Dorothy’s ankle, made an impression and I liked Phoebe Brogden as Olivia the rehearsal pianist. She made playing the wonderful prop ‘piano’ look very realistic. Colm Forde as the tap dancing waiter, Alex Wyllie-Howkins as a stagehand, and Hannah Bryer and Megan Veres as two very convincing Thugs all added to the fun. Well done to all of you.

Ensemble:

The ensemble were a delight to watch in this production with such energy emanating from the stage. Everyone was entirely focused and in character all the time with some fantastic and beautifully co-ordinated and synchronised dancing. The ensemble makes the company complete and of course there would be no show without an ensemble. You all worked so hard and having learned all those complicated and quite tricky dance routines in a week is nothing short of astounding. A huge well done to every one of you!

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Director:

I have seen director Luke Wetherill in many productions both with YOBOS and BOS and he has proved to be a talented actor. His directing debut was I believe with YOBOS in their successful production of the Wedding Singer but with 42nd Street Luke has really excelled in the directing department. This was as slick a show as you would see anywhere in any professional theatre. The characters were well drawn and the action flowed seamlessly in this complicated, multi-scene musical. The relatively small stage was complimented by using side and front areas in which to perform which worked perfectly. The pace never faltered and the energy and enthusiasm flowing from the stage was palpable. As well as the many touching moments I like the touches of humour for example the whole cast looked as one to the audience on the line ‘Kids can do anything’. Cracking stuff! As well as being a great story there is much humour which Luke brought out to good effect. Well done Luke you did a first class job!

Musical Director:  

The musical direction by Emily Sloan was absolutely spot on. The ensemble singing was excellent with some good harmony work while the principal vocalists really shone in this production. The band in spite of being heavily weighted to the brass section provided excellent backing to the company singing and never over-shadowed the principals’ vocals. The band played with skill and really added to the overall atmosphere of the production.

Choreographer:  

Being a dancing show the choreography is fundamental part of the show and I have to say I was completely mesmerized by Alice Robinson’s choreography.  There were many great routines and the company dancers were very proficient in all of them with some impressive synchronised sequences in which all the company were able to participate. The timing and musical interpretations were of a high standard. I liked all of the company dancing but one sequence that particularly struck me was the transition Go Into Your Dance number as the ‘company’ dancers moved into the café scene. Another memorable sequence was the mirror routine in Dames which looked amazing with some excellent precision movement. The choreography was splendid throughout the show and many congratulations to Alice and her assistant choreographer Amelia Haverson for achieving such an amazing standard of performance in such a short time. Impressive!

Stage management:

Frankie Dowers stage managed the show with no noticeable problems from the audience point of view and with such a complicated scene plot this was no mean feat in the relatively small confines of the Wykham Theatre. Well done!

Sound:

The sound design by Owen Vint, assisted by Camron Northcote, worked very well throughout the whole performance with personal mikes all working on cue with no apparent problems. The show obviously has a complex sound plot to accommodate with so many speaking and sung parts which Owen had covered well. I only noticed one tiny moment when an un-miked one-liner was a little lost. Congratulations on a slick sound plot.

Lighting:

The lighting designer and technical director Josh Lake had created an excellent lighting plot full of atmospheric lighting sequences and some very deftly executed lighting changes to show shifts in the action in some scenes. This was most prominent in the lighting changes between the  hotel set on the main stage and Dorothy’s hotel room down on the lower apron. The timing of the transitions was perfect and really made the scene work well. Many congratulations to Josh and his team Matty Sanders, George O’Connor, Camron Northcote, Chris Conlon and Steven Haynes.

Make-up:

The make-up by Jenny Tustian was most impressive and looked perfectly in keeping with the characters and the period of the production. Everyone looked splendid and the make-up was well applied and looked natural under the lights.

Hair and Wigs:

A production of this type necessarily requires period hair design and of course the extensive use of wigs. These were all effectively managed and co-ordinated by Kim Nicholls, Gill Crowther, Jennie Healy, Megan Veres and Katherine Cracknell. The hair and wigs looked excellent and the period feel of the production was captured well by the attention to detail especially in the female members of the company.

Set Design:

I really liked the set design with the raised multi-levelled platforms towards the rear of the stage which became the very effective setting for the Lullaby of Broadway number. The use of the front and side extensions worked a treat. Ben Coleman’s design vision really paid off. I was particularly impressed by the very quick back cloth changes. They whizzed across in the twinkling of an eye. The lavish curtains for the hotel bar scenes looked brilliant and with no ‘flying’ facilities they were in position with the bar and flower decorations in a few seconds – so important to keep up the pace of the story telling. In fact every scene change was so quick so as to maintain the pace and narrative thread beautifully. The Shuffle Off To Buffalo scene worked well and the clever setting with the girls seated on suitcases was very well handled dispensing with the usual carriage set. Congratulations to Ben and his trusty stage crew.

Props:

Sharon Smith had assembled an impressive array of props and the cast all used them effectively. I’m always slightly wary of the difference (if there is one) between set dressing and props. The ‘piano’ for example was very realistic but was it a prop or set dressing? Perhaps another ‘job’ in the programme – set dresser? But all the props looked in period and certainly added to the ‘look’ of the production.

Costumes:

I managed to have a word with my old friend after the performance a slightly frazzled Janet Bishop who had the arduous job of costuming this very complicated and demanding show. I’ve been in the show twice myself and know just how many costumes are required – some with VERY quick changes in some cases! Janet did a magnificent job with costumes supplied by Wacky Wardrobe and the BOS store. Everyone looked very good and the costumes reflected the period and setting perfectly.

Programme:

The programme designed by the very busy Ben Coleman (!), Debbie Coleman and Sam Brittain was full of show background and had all the cast photographs and short biographies. This is a nice touch and recognises everyone’s contribution to the whole company effort. A page celebrating NODA achievements is always good to see and I liked the page in which the ‘techies’ have their say about their thoughts on the production and the company.

Front of House:  

What lovely Front of House team led by Marilyn Fairbairn and Jo Mates who supplied me with my ticket and programme and of course my usual warm welcome from BOS President Barbara Homer was second to none. Thanks also for the very welcome refreshments prior to the performance and during the interval on what was a very warm August afternoon. It was also a pleasure chat again briefly to Elisabeth Irons the YOBOS’ Convenor and co-ordinator.

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At the risk of sounding like a broken record I must reiterate how much I enjoyed this production. Everything was just right and I’m sure the very appreciative audience left the theatre humming the familiar tunes as I did. Thank you to everyone connected with this production - it was one which will linger in the memory for some time to come.

With very best wishes to you all and for continued future success for YOBOS.