Everybody's Talking About Jamie

Wow, what a show this was.  I know that Musical Youth Company of Oxford’s reputation, built up over almost forty years, enables it to attract the most talented young performers in the district, many of whom go on to enjoy careers in professional musical theatre.  I know that it has access to the Oxford Playhouse, and that the Company members are supported by brilliant creative, technical and administrative teams.  And I know that it rehearses its shows over many months, as opposed to embracing the show-in-a-week format favoured by many other local youth groups.  Even so, with “Everybody’s Talking About Jamie”, MYCO has once again presented a production of exceptional quality, a production of which any amateur company, youth or senior, would be justifiably proud.

It was eighteen months ago that MYCO decided to stage this show in support of the group’s core aim of strengthening equality, diversity and inclusivity.  In addition to drawing on the expertise within its own ranks, and in accordance with the Company’s philosophy of embracing opportunity and leaving nothing to chance, specialists were brought in to advise on aspects of the show as varied as developing drag queen personas or wearing the hijab.  The result is a wonderfully engaging musical which packs a powerful emotional punch and which shares an important message at a time when the very concept of DEI is under attack.

Much of the momentum for this project evidently came from the Director / Designer, who drew on his personal experience of homophobic bullying, and of training multi-agency professionals in how to make schools and other settings more inclusive.  The starting point for this presentation was the realisation that the drama should primarily be played out on a single raised platform.  This basic idea proved to be simple, flexible and effective: dedicated lighting under the open structure of the platform gave it shape and definition while connecting it aesthetically to the forestage extending over the pit, and different access points enabled it to support a variety of dramatic settings.

Skeletal properties – a table and chairs for Jamie’s Mum’s kitchen, a couple of racks of dresses for Victor’s Secrets – provided all the practical support the actors required, and the design concept was underpinned by a coherent collection of projected illustrations.  Dynamic lighting brought energy and a sense of occasion to ensemble numbers.  The visual appeal of the show was enhanced by the costumes, from the blazers and ties of a contemporary school academy, to the flamboyant outfits of the drag queens.  Make-up is integral to the show, and I particularly liked the progression in Jamie’s make-up, from a dash of lippy to full glam, while the drag queens sported a look that appeared entirely characteristic of the scene.

The choreography was based around joyous, uninhibited individual-based moves: lots of energy, lots of armography, plenty of bounce to keep the energy levels and pace high, and a bit of variation to ensure that the big ensemble numbers didn’t end up looking like parade ground drills.  There was expressive dance here too, and the scene in which this was utilised to help to tell “The Legend of Loco Chanel” was a particular highlight.

The singing was as strong as ever, with powerful unison and accurate well-balanced part singing; although outnumbered, the boys held their own in the four part harmonies.  The eight piece band was excellent, with the bass, drums and percussion ratcheting up the tension in the vamps between scenes, so that you just knew that the storm had to break sometime soon.

The Musical Company of Oxford poured their hearts and souls into this production, and told this important story with style, with commitment, and with artistic and technical flair.  I feel sure that the implicit message of this show will stay with the young people in the Company for a long time; perhaps it will help one of them – some of them, all of them – to find the courage to be themselves, and to help to build a world in which everyone is accepted for who they want to be.

© NODA CIO.  All rights reserved.

© NODA CIO. All rights reserved.