Fame

Fame is a musical based on the 1980s pop culture film and it follows a cohort of students at New York City High School for Performing Arts from their freshman year to graduation. It is full of ensemble dance and song pieces and needs high energy which made it the perfect choice for CAOS Junior section, The plot follows 14 characters with pieces of their stories highlighted, they are from different walks of life, but they all have the same dream of success.

The open stage had a small video wall to depict where in the story we were – locker room, classroom, dance studio etc which worked well and of course the addition of the iconic taxi for the final number looked really good. The lighting plot was sympathetic to the numbers being performed with back lighting used to good effect in some of the numbers. The band under the control of musical director Claire sounded excellent and complimented the production throughout, it’s always an added bonus to have live music. The choreography was interesting to watch and performed with precision showcasing the energy, talent and confidence of this group of young people,

The ensemble gave good support throughout this production, their singing and dancing was of high standard and they made a valuable contribution to the overall success of the piece. The opening sequence “Pray I Make PA/Hard Work” was really well put together and set up the energy and standard for the rest of the show.

The teaching staff, Sophie Ions as Ms Bell, Molly Hall as Miss Myres, Ami Dodds as Mrs Sheinkopf and Katie Lawson as Miss Sherman all played their roles well depicting characters much older than themselves. The duet “The Teachers Argument” with Ms Bell and Miss Sherman was very good and Miss Shermans “These are my Children” was powerful, emotional and a standout moment, well done Katie. Nick, played by Alex Rochester, is an actor who wants to hone his craft whilst Serena, played by Lucy Wilkinson, is also an ambitious actor but has her sights set on Nick. These two young performers gave us strong renditions of their respective musical numbers – their duet “Play a Love Scene”, Alex with “I Want to Make Magic” and Lucy with “Think of Meryl Streep” wow, such talent. Music Students Lambchops and Goody played by Charlotte Whitfield and Tom Quinn gave good character interpretations with Tom showcasing impressive Saxophone playing skills which added depth of belief in his character. As Mabel, Olivia Armstrong had some lovely comedy moments portraying this snack loving student, her “Mabels Prayer “was well done. Anna Eddon as Iris the ballet dancer may not have had many lines but was able to showcase her absolutely beautiful dancing skills. Tyrone, played by Ted Gladstone, excelled in hip hop but struggled with his academic skills, a complex character to portray but Ted did a super job, his dance numbers were good and his “Dancing on the Sidewalk” with the company was a great number. George Anglesea playing Joey brought fun and laughs with his one liner jokes and cheeky character and his “Can’t Keep it Down” was an audience favourite. The characters of Schlomo and Carmen were played by Thomas Nugent and Chloe Cutter. Thomas gave a convincing portrayal of the gifted, multitalented student with good vocal performances and a good chemistry with Chloe as Carmen. Chole as the fiery, starstruck Carmen did well portraying this complex character and her bravado as well as vulnerable moments; her “In LA” solo was poignant and she led the iconic “Fame” with the confidence of a seasoned performer.

This was a super production in which every performer gave their all and were a credit to the creative team well done! Congratulations to Lee, Claire, Scott and their team, the “Hard Work” paid off and I’m sure will live in the hearts of your young performers for many years. I look forward to seeing what comes next for CAOS Juniors. 

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