Departures

Arriving at the Forest Arts Centre in New Milton, on a cold evening in Dorset, I was greeted warmly by Marie Coltman and fellow members as front of house staff (resplendent in "Airport" costumes) and we were shown to our seats.

Departures, written by Tracy Knapp and Olwen Adams is a self penned ensemble piece focused around the departure lounge of an airport, snowed in with delayed flights leaving the cast in character to intertwine individual stories with a great array of musical numbers from a plethora of popular musicals stretching from the 1950s to 2020s. The great thing about ensemble pieces, and Milton are no exception, is that it allows those who want to have a pricipal role the opportunity to do so. We were treated to songs from Shreck, Matilda, Gentlemen Prefer Blonds, La La Land, Sweet Charity, Chicago and many more.

All the cast were clearly here to enjoy themselves and this came over very well to the audience, all of whom were here for a good time too and they were not disappointed. The choreography varied from piece to piece but the cast knew where they were supposed to be and when.

A simple set, with movable parts (chairs, desks etc, that you would expect to find in a departure lounge) meant that any blackouts and down time were kept to a minimum, which meant that the whole piece flowed well. The diction was clear and any mistakes were not apparent (well, not to us!).The lighting was effective and complimented the movement well, along with the sound which was clear and precise.

Overall this was a good performance, one that the audience, cast and crew all enjoyed, well done Milton Musical Society. Looking forward to 9 to 5 in April

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