Bonnie and Clyde

When you first entered the venue, you were greeted by Ayda, a car that is more than 90  years old. Then you saw Wanted posters, some prison bars and an old-fashioned  bicycle. I was impressed by the effort put into creating an atmosphere before even  stepping foot into the theatre. When you did enter the theatre, the atmosphere was  created by red lighting and music from the era. The curtains were open and you could  see the set, which was made up of rostra and wooden pallets, with some side flats on  the front of the stage. The set worked well within the context of the piece, and the added  doors to bring in the car worked well. The added bits of props were appropriate for the  piece and just added some more depth to the performance.  

I must say that I was impressed with everyone in the cast. The ensemble and main cast  worked seamlessly together and there was not one weak link. Bonnie was played by  Millie Tanner, who gave her whole soul into the character. She encapsulated Bonnie and  held her own and gave a performance of her life. Clyde was played by Sam Freeman,  who was outstanding. Both he and Millie had an excellent chemistry and their voices  blended well together. You could see how hard these two had worked on their  characterisations and in the spirit of Bonnie and Clyde, they stole the show. Buck  Barrow was played by Thomas Murray. What an excellent rapport he had with Sam on  stage, and I loved his chemistry with Blanche. He had some comical bits which his  timing was spot on with, one highlight was when he fell up the stairs and referenced it  going off stage, that had the biggest laugh of the show. Blanche was played by Cerys  Watkins, who was the calm influence on stage. She had a particularly lovely moment in  her duet with Millie, which was so moving. Her chemistry with Thomas was great and  you fully felt her grief at the end. Very well played.  

Ted Hinton was played by Alexander Williams. I must say, he had some lovely moments  and his solo on the song ‘You can do better than him” was delightful. Another highlight  was on the reprise of ‘Raise a little hell” in the second act when Sam, Thomas and  Alexander came together and their harmony gave me goosebumps. There were some  lovely moments played out by Karen Myring as Emma Parker, a particular scene when  she was begging Bonnie to come home, really struck a chord with me. There were also  some lovely moments with Catherine Hooper as Cumie Barrow, particularly when Buck  died. I must also mention the Young Bonnie’s and Young Clyde. The performance I  attended had Bronwen Lewis play Young Bonnie, Lana Holmes as Teenage Bonnie and  Matthew Dyer as Young Clyde. I was so impressed by these three young actors, who  handled themselves with maturity with some distressing content. Bronwen really  impressed me as she opened the whole show and she did it confidently and with a charming voice. I also must give credit to Richard Loveday as the Preacher; he had a  brilliant moment with his song ‘Made in America’ at the start of the second half.  

Congratulations go to the whole team at Port Talbot Musical Theatre, it really was a great  afternoon at the theatre, and I thoroughly enjoyed my first experience of Bonnie and  Clyde the Musical. Thank you Port Talbot Musical Theatre for your gracious welcome  and I look forward to your next production.

The views in this report are solely of the author.

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