9 to 5

With the warmest of welcomes from the front of house team, the evening was off to a good start. Seeing the colourful open set from the minute you entered the hall also gave you the feeling that you were in for a night of good theatre, and I wasn’t disappointed. The energetic start to the show lead into the busy office environment of Consolidated Industries. I feel that I really have to mention this scene as one that stood out for me.  The detail in the direction to achieve the portrayal of daily office life in a busy company was quite outstanding.  The energy from the stage continued throughout the performance.

Laura Spence (Violet) was well cast in the role being equally talented in all three aspects of singing acting and dance. Doralee (Deirdre MacFarlane) gave a solid and convincing performance as ‘the backwoods Barbie’ and Judy (Helen Knowles-Venters) showed good strong vocal and acting ability as she found her way in the new job.  Franklyn Hart Jr. played by Andrew Doig did not hold back and gave a very convincing performance as the sexist, lecherous and pompous boss, and while he tried hard to rule the roost, the women won in the end!  Shows like this are never complete without a supporting cast of principals and ensemble. Each and every one of them worked as hard as the next person to bring high energy and warmth to the stage.

There is always a technical  challenge when working in a hall rather than a theatre with full facilities.  With tight wing space and limited facilities, the crew under the direction of Stage Manager Sheona Goodall, worked well as a team to ensure the technical aspects of the performance ran smoothly.  The open set worked well and use of simple but effective lighting assisted with the small scenes that took place at either side of the stage.

As always a performance like this never happens without the excellent skills of the production team, Scott Melvin – Director ensured that every aspect and detail that needed to be in the performance was there.  The band under the direction of Stuart Murray was tight and the coordination between the pit and the stage was very much together with an excellent balance of sound. Choreography was modern and slick and it was good to see the full company involved.

In summary, a great performance.  Well done Cupar Amateur Musical Society.

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