Chess

I am not going to say that this was the best production I have ever seen performed by LPOS but I thought it was a remarkable effort for a society of their size.  Possibly a little ambitious but seeing the theatre full and all the happy faces leaving at the end of the evening it was certainly a brave idea.  I loved the tricky choral numbers which challenge performers vocally but felt that chorographically the great patterns for both the first two numbers showed a slight lack of discipline. When standing STILL they should all be still not some shuffling and others changing their arm positions.  I thought the costumes were simple but very affective and by act 2 the show was on a roll and the chorus in their comfort zone. As I said this is an ambitious show and the seven main characters were well cast.  Laura Thornett was a suitably strong but emotional Florence and had good chemistry with both the chess players, Richard Cooper as Anatoly from Russia and Steve Pannell as Freddie from America. Josie Wenham had a fairly small role as Anatoly’s estranged wife, but sometimes small is good as in this case when she sang ‘Someone else’s Story’ outstandingly and also the great duet with Laura, ‘I know him So Well’. Simon Smith gave a very forceful performance as Alexander, the head of the Soviet Delegation, and Sam Shanks was every inch the Arbiter with his stern stance and unflickering facial expression. Richard Howell’s portrayal of The Head of Global Television would have had more impact if he had not found it necessary to keep glancing at his clip board where I suspect he was hiding a few word prompts. Knowing ones dialogue is so important. Both Simon Smith and Steve Pannell gave incredibly powerful performances and their singing was excellent and I loved the split level stage with the chess table down at the very front and at a lower level.  The chess moves by all the players were convincing and very dramatic. Scene changes were really slick, props were simple but very effective, and costumes were well thought out. Daniel and the four members of the Band gave just the right level of accompaniment and thanks to Brian Mercer on sound and Lee Wenham on lighting and some clever directing the all important story line was clear.

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