Hello, Dolly!

This Broadway musical, full of well-known tunes, humour and colour provided a welcome start to the 2017 Season here in Fife.

The title role of Dolly Levi is a huge ask of any performer. Not only, to a large extent,  does she have to carry the show, she also has to punch out a host of big numbers, be appealing to the audience, have comedic talent and last but not least look stunning on every entry! Well, Jude Vandecasteele certainly managed to accomplish just that. The object of Dolly’s intentions is prosperous (but grumpy!) feed-store owner Horace Vandergelder (Neil Jarrett). Neil’s take on this part certainly did nothing to dissuade the audience of his level of grumpiness (although Neil in his biog claimed “he found this difficult to play”!).  Cornelius, in the very safe hands of Andrew Doig, offered a perfect example of first class timing in delivery of lines, and this, together with confidently sung solos and concerted numbers made the part a joy to listen to. So, too, with Helen Knowles performance as hat shop owner, Irene Molloy – the object of Cornelius’ affections. Helen’s clarity of diction, combined with excellent singing and stage skills, allowed her to make Irene Molloy one of the outstanding characters in this musical. We then come to Cornelius’ sidekick and co-worker Barnaby Tucker, played with exhausting athleticism and audience appealing characterisation, by newcomer to the adult Company, Logan Booth. Recently moving from the Youth Section of CAMS, Logan quickly made himself a favourite with the audience, and I look forward to seeing him playing more parts in the years to come.

“Hello, Dolly!” also offers a host of smaller character parts, each of which, in its own way brings more  sparkle to this already lively show.  Minnie Fay (Eilidh Smith) appeared confident as the assistant to Mrs Molloy.  Gordon Wood managed to grab a few show-stealing moments as Rudolph Reisenweber, the head waiter at Harmonia Gardens restaurant. To complete the name checks, Ambrose Kemper (Graham Lumsden), Ermengarde (Mahri Smith), Ernestina (Ruth Anderson), Mrs Rose (Suzie Brain) and last but not least Judge (Gary Smith), all developed their minor characters well, and added to a very enjoyable show.  The chorus put a huge amount of effort and enthusiasm into the show – obviously responding well to Scott Melvin’s clever direction.

The orchestra in the capable hands of MD, Kate Doig, was a delight to listen to, while the “how to dance effectively in a cramped space” choreography by Lorna Lewis, was just as good to watch!  Sets for this show were minimalist in style and sound operation was effectively carried out. Costuming must be mentioned as entirely appropriate to the show, with Dolly’s outfits being particularly stunning.

Well done CAMS! Many thanks for the invite!

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