13

Thank you for inviting me to your production of ’13’ which follows 12-year old Evan Goldman who moves from his New York City life to the sleepy Indiana town of Appleton following his parent’s divorce. Surrounded by an array of new middle school students, he needs to establish his place in the popularity pecking order and prepare for his impending Bar Mitzvah

The director had ensured that the youngsters had been well prepared and understood their characters which were believable and delivered very well. There was some very good casting and she had developed the chemistry between the young actors so that they were very natural together. 

The musical directors had worked with the cast to produce strong vocals and all the cast sang with confidence. On occasions, some of the vocals were a little forced, but in the most part, their performances were very good. I was pleased to see that the cast was supported by a live band led by Amy. The band produced a great sound and did not overpower the singers. The excellent and energetic choreography created the mood of the story straight from the first number. The routines were engaging and made good use of repeated patterns which were extremely effective. The cast had been well trained, and their movements were slick and precise and synchronised.

This was a demanding musical, but it had enormous heart and was full of pace, energy and great teamwork. Congratulations to everyone involved!

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