Anything Goes

Like most musicals, Anything Goes is an inconsequential story, with some great music!

Angie Frost directing her first show at The Spotlight did a good job, as it is a difficult stage to work with, but as she has choreographed a number of shows here she had a good knowledge of the stage and its limitations. One comment I would make is that I felt the stage looked very empty at times with just one or two principals, it might have been nice to have some of the ensemble grouped around as they would be on a ship, but just my personal preference.

I liked the set up of scene 1 for the bar – it looked quite glitzy and opulent, but I felt the actual deck of the boat looked very utilitarian, which was a disappointment. It needed some dressing or something to make it look more like an ocean-going liner. Some nice lighting did not help to bring it up to standard, but did enhance the mood.

James Reynolds got some lovely harmonies from his singers, but the orchestra appeared a little light in sound, however that said, the balance between stage and pit was very good.

I would have liked to see a little more energy from the ensemble in the group numbers, it would have lifted the general ambience, after all, these people were supposed to be on a pleasure cruise, with a famous gangster! Public Enemy was nicely sung, but needed more animation in faces to lift the sound.

I enjoyed Haydn Boxall’s portrayal of Billy, so nice to see a principal man who can both sing and dance. His dance breaks with Hope and Reno were excellent, and I felt he really got into and enjoyed the part.

Rachel Green as Reno gave us a feisty character, who contrasted well with the other ladies, she sang and danced well.

Hope can be a background character, but I felt Sarah Earl played her well, making her unusually strong, which I liked. Goodbye Little Dream was charming, as was All Through the night with Billy. A sympathetic pairing.

I felt some of the smaller speaking parts (Reporters etc) needed to be emphasised more, as it was difficult to hear what they said.

Daniel Goode gave us a spiffing Lord Evelyn, great understanding of the character, I loved The Gypsy in Me, a good comedy number, very well done.

David Cousins as Elisha and Jenny Reynolds as Evangeline formed a nice duo, although Evangeline’s faint was a missed opportunity, it would have been nice to see her fall further before she was caught, it would have enhanced the scene.

Carly McHugh gave us a suitably dumb blonde characterisation as Erma, again singing very well, and a good foil to Andrew Frost’s Moonface, a fun couple.

The Captain (Roger Green) and the Purser (Graham Duncan) both did well, and I liked their crew of sailors, who sang and danced well. I particularly liked Lady Fair, although again more animation would have lifted it.

Unfortunately for me Luke (Mark Williams) and John (Scott Welch) rather faded into the background, again good comedy opportunities missed.

The bows were good, but I did not get the feeling of a wedding celebration, it was all a bit solemn, and more reaction from the ensemble to the revelations would have emphasised the humour.

A good production on the whole, but needed some more energy and enthusiasm from the ensemble, and a bit more attention to detail.

My thanks to BTC for their hospitality, good to catch up with you all again.

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