Beauty and the Beast Jnr

I had the pleasure of attending CMP’s first youth workshop production of Beauty & The Beast at Sandhurst School. The cast had been allocated their roles several months earlier, giving them time to learn their lines, but all the blocking, characterisation and choreography was brought together during an intensive five-day workshop beginning on 10 August. That would be a considerable challenge for an experienced adult company, so what this young cast achieved in such a short time was genuinely impressive.

As a workshop performance, it understandably didn’t have quite the polish of a fully rehearsed musical, but that really wasn’t the point. This was about bringing a group of young people together, developing their skills and giving them the opportunity to create something they could be proud of. And proud they should be. Despite the extremely hot temperature in the theatre, the cast opened the show with confidence and maintained tremendous energy throughout the performance.

The company also faced a rather unexpected interruption during the second half, when a government emergency alert sounded simultaneously on mobile phones across the auditorium. A technical stop was unavoidable, yet the cast returned to the stage without appearing fazed and picked up exactly where they had left off. Even seasoned professionals can find an interruption like that disconcerting, so the composure shown by these young performers deserves particular praise.

There were naturally areas that could be developed in future workshops. Accents weren’t always consistently maintained, and encouraging each performer to choose a voice they can comfortably sustain throughout the production would strengthen the overall character work. There were also occasions when the pitch of a song appeared particularly high for some members of the cast. Unfortunately, the MTI licence and supplied soundtrack don’t allow the company to alter the musical keys, so this was an unavoidable challenge rather than something the creative team could readily address.

These are development points within what was an enormously positive week. It was lovely to see so many people come out on a very hot Friday evening to support the group, and lovelier still to see the obvious enjoyment on stage. This was a wonderful start for CMP’s youth workshop, and I look forward to discovering what these young stars do next.

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