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Gary Longden looks back on his 2018 highlightsTheatre continues to be very strong
locally, both professionally, and amateur. I count myself fortunate to
be able to see so much of it. I write almost all of my reviews
immediately after I have returned home from a production, so as well as
being factual, they are also an emotional response to what I have seen.
It
has been a delight to trawl back through those reviews for this piece,
fond (and not so fond) memories rekindled. The following awards simply
relate to what I have seen. Inevitably others of merit will have evaded
my critical gaze.
Derby Theatre continues to set the pace artistically in the region,
unsurprisingly winning in the
Most Innovative Production category. The Birmingham Hippodrome
continues its position as the theatrical Dreadnought, putting on the
biggest and most expensive productions on a stage that few in the West
End can rival, Sutton Arts Theatre continues to be a beacon for amateur
productions of the most consistently highest order, and I am pleased to
report that the amateur Grange Playhouse in Walsall survived an
essential and costly refurbishment and successfully reopened. Show of the Year – Mathew Bourne’s Cinderella , Birmingham Hippodrome – a masterpiece.
Sir Matthew Bourne's Cinderella
Best Pro Play – The Kite
Runner, Birmingham Rep.
Visceral, compelling, funny, and tragic, an international story that had
me spellbound.
Best Am Play – The Perfect
Murder, Sutton Arts
. A decent formula thriller lifted above its station by a superb cast,
and skilled direction.
Best Pro Musical –
Spamalot , Derby Theatre.
A riotously funny Monty Python outing performed lovingly by the cast,
with the love and laughter returned in spades by an appreciative
audience.
Best Am Musical – All
Shook up, Lichfield Garrick.
I tried to resist Elvis’s music, I tried to resist the cheesy script, I
tried to ignore the joyful dance numbers, I tried to stop my feet from
tapping and my fingers from clicking. I failed.
Best Pro Dance/ Ballet –
Cinderella, Birmingham Hippodrome.
An immense slice of theatrical genius in the ballet dance genre, by Sir
Mathew Bourne, in which the Café de Paris is blown up on stage before
your very eyes. Best Pro Comedy – Private Lives Derby Theatre. A trusty old war horse of a show, brilliantly reimagined, but faithfully staged
Best Am Comedy – Boeing
Boeing .
Amongst the best farces ever written, the company threw themselves into
the show, the audience threw themselves around in laughter.
Robert Hicks, as Robert, Liz Adnitt as Gretchen, Edward Hockin as Bernard and Bhupinder Brown as Alitalia’s Gabriella in Highbury's Boeing, Boeing. Pictures: Alastair Barnsley
Best Children’s Show–
Morgan & West Magic for Kids, Derby.
Children’s shows are tricky. The children have to like it, obviously,
but the parents who bring them along, and pay for the tickets, need to
like it too. Morgan & West delivered that crossover, delighting children
and adults alike, in a period magic show which had me wondering how they
did it- let alone the children!
Most Innovative
production- Two, Derby Theatre.
The stage was extended and converted into a working pub serving beer to
the audience and enabling the cast to interact with those seated around
them. Brilliantly acted and executed, playwright Jim Cartwright himself
was present, and declared it one of the best realisations of the play he
had ever seen.
Best Male Professional
Performance – From Ibiza to the Norfolk Broads, Derby Theatre
Alex Walton is stunning as Martin, a Bowie fan who follows in his idols
footsteps to find his hero, and himself. A one man tour de force.
Best Female Amateur
Performance - Dick Whittington, Sutton Arts.
Phebe Jackson, below, as Fairy Bowbells. Her energy and singing brought
sunshine whenever she appeared. Confident, assured and professional, she
set a standard for the rest of the cast to aspire to.
And with 2019 almost upon us the schedule for the year is taking shape. Torben Betts is bringing the dark comedy Caroline’s Kitchen to Derby in January, Mathew Bourne’s Swan Lake comes to the Birmingham Hippodrome in February, as does Les Miserables in April. Avenue Q tours at both Wolverhampton Grand and Derby.
I
can’t wait! |
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