Hello Dolly!

There are certain shows in the musical theatre firmament that elicit an excited air of anticipation and “Hello Dolly!” is most certainly right there amongst those at the very top!  That acclaimed position carries with a heavy dose of reputation – people have their own high expectations of what they expect to see and in Ross Hadley’s production for Stourbridge Amateur Operatic Society’s production, the musical theatre afficionados needed to have nothing to worry about.

This production launched itself on the unsuspecting audience with a bang! The Overture from the superb Midland Concert Orchestra under the masterful musical direction of George Stuart, put us right in the mood for a tremendous evening, a stunning set, amazing costumes, skilful staging and sheer talent was the order of the night. As the familiar characters were introduced, we marvelled at Leon Davies’ sardonic and wryly humorous, Horace Vandergelder, Anna Hough’s delightfully melodic and beautifully portrayed Irene Molloy alongside her characterful tour-de-force, Kate Berrington’s Minnie Fay, Jonathan Hunt and Ethan Davies’ masterful comic timing and great teamwork as Cornelius Hackl and Barnaby Tucker, the beautifully played double-act of Reuben Southall and Izzy Pankhurst’s Ambrose Kemper and Ermengarde – but the absolute joy and amazing brilliance  and stage presence of Rachel Davies’ Dolly Gallagher Levi, was a sheer privilege to watch – if there ever was a role that was destined to be performed by anyone  it was Dolly for Rachel!

As legendary show number followed legendary show number, we were fortunate to witness the inspired and admired choreography of Salli Cage enthusiastically executed by the gifted ensemble and talented dancers of the company as well as being able to listen to Jerry Herman’s music and lyrics bought to life by this accomplished company under George Stuart’s guidance.

With excellent cameo contributions from Julia Tromans as Ernestina, Richard Cope’s Rudolph, Dawn Shillingord’s Mrs Rose, Nick Westley-Smith’s Judge and Louis and Harry Nicholas’ Stanley and Judge added to an ultra-efficient stage team under the direction of Stage Manager, Margaret Taylor, assisted by Jon Simpson , superb lighting and sound from The Lighting Factory and DW Technical Services – a great evening’s theatre was had by all.

My grateful thanks to everyone at SAOS for a thoroughly enjoyable evening as always.

Ian Thompson Regional Representative District 8

Hello Dolly! has long been one of my absolute favourite musicals, so I was thrilled to be invited to join Stourbridge Amateur Operatic Society for this production. From the very first note of that magnificent overture, it was clear we were all in for a truly wonderful night. Ian has already highlighted the performance, the set, and the costumes, and I couldn’t agree more! The iconic title number—both its build-up and the song itself—was a joy, and the Waiters’ Galop was a real show-stopping delight.

The humour in this show was there throughout, especially in the courtroom scene, which perfectly set the stage for one of my all-time favourite moments, It Only Takes a Moment. It was performed beautifully.

Huge congratulations to everyone involved. What a triumph! I’m already counting down the days to October 2026 and We Will Rock You!

Andy Brown, Regional Councillor, NODA West Midlands

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