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Stars explained: * A production of no real merit
with failings in all areas. ** A production showing evidence of not
enough time or effort, or even talent, and which never breathes any real
life into the piece – or a show lumbered with a terrible script. *** A
good enjoyable show which might have some small flaws but has largely
achieved what it set out to do.**** An excellent show which shows a
great deal of work and stage craft with no noticeable or major
flaws.***** A four star show which has found that extra bit of magic
which lifts theatre to another plane. |
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A night full of promise Oh What a Night The Arcadians The Crescent Theatre **** IT is a pity that this songs from the
shows programme was only on for a day, two performances, but just one
day - which hardly seems just reward or return for the cast and
producers for what was obviously lot of hard work and effort. And what a cast. There are 32 listed in the
programme plus another 19 from the junior section, the L'Arcs, who range
in age from six to 16 with the oldest member of The Arcadians on show a
mere 76; and director/choreographer Viv Morrison managed to get them all
on stage at numerous times duirng the evening without it looking like
the first day of the sales at Rackham's. Viv, and the cast, also managed to make the show
interesting which might be thought to be a prerequisite of any show, but
it is no mean feat with no props or scenery to fall back on. The number of soloists was impressive and,
although it was not difficult to pick out the more accomplished singers
and performers, the rest all played their part. The odd note might not
have been in quite the same key as the excellent four piece band
under musical director Lauren Coles, but it was all done with such charm
and enthusiasm that no one could really complain. Everyone was given a chance to shine and,
let's be honest, that is what an amateur musical theatre company should
all be about, particularly on a concert night. They opened, as did the society 40 years ago,
with Finian's Rainbow – not a favourite show of mine but Elaine
Struthers gave that section a lift with Glocca Morra. STRANGE CHOICE That was followed by the L'Arcs appearing with
four songs from Chicago, which seemed a strange choice for a
junior section, a musical about sex scandals, loose living and
fun-loving murders, but the kids coped well particularly Georgina
Burgess with Funny Honey, Dylan Hartnell with Razzle Dazzle
and Connor Parker who produced an excellent Mr Cellophane – if
anyone noticed him, that is . . . One little lad was the real star though. He must
have been one of the smallest and youngest members but his levels of
concentration were superhuman as he worked desperately hard to follow
the rest in every routine and, when a bit he know and obviously liked
was about to arrive, stopped and braced himself with furrows of
concentration and then threw himself into it with unbridled delight. He
is a star of the future. Singin' In The Rain brought one of the
show highlights with Moses Supposes as three of the leading men,
Richard Ainslie, John Morrison and Kris Evans not only showedfine
singing voices but a fine line in tap dancing – something we had already
seen with Good Morning and Rob Houghton, Michelle Burgess and
Bronwen Collins-Jones and in the rainless finale. Tap was a dying talent but seems to be making a
welcome comeback and Evans, in particular, seems to be a skilled
exponent of the art. We Will Rock You opened with some of the
younger members, Sarah Evans, Michelle Burgess, Natalie Cooper, Alice
Dent and Laura Peters, putting some real rock 'n roll wellie into
Somebody to Love and the set all ending with everyone on
stage for the first half finale, We Will Rock You.
Claire Best gave a solid performance of No-one
but You (Only the Good Die Young), written and recorded by Brian May
and the survivors of Queen after the death of Freddie Mercury. The musical was a favourite of Arcadians member
Hilary Wade, who died suddenly recently and the show, and
particularly that section, was dedicated to her memory. The second half brought us the Jersey Boys,
and Wicked along with a Disney selection and finally a little
preview of The Arcadians' next show, The Wizard of Oz, at The
Crescent in October with We're Off to See the Wizard. There were impressive performances from Gabby
Thompson in I'm Not That Girl and Lucy Evans in Defying Gravity
while Claire Best and Sonya Williams combined well with Beauty and
the Beast and Helen Rourke, who is blind, showed what a fine
voice she has in Feed the Birds. Laura Peters, Elaine Struthers and Gabby
Thompson gave us a lively Be Our Guest with Michelle Burgess,
Alison Cooper and Alice Dent weighing in with Belle. The numbers and quality of members on display,
and particularly the youngsters who have joined a musical theatre
company, show that The Arcadians are in a healthy state with a promising
future. Confirmation came in the form of a near full
Crescent, plenty of cheers and an entertaining evening. 31-03-12 Roger Clarke |
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