Honk!

I was delighted to be invited back to Mid Cheshire Musical Theatre Company tonight to see their brilliant production of HONK!  HONK is a re-telling of the story of The Ugly Ducking by Hans Christian Anderson.  Having had a friend in the original London production, playing the role of Ugly, I was delighted to finally see it for myself.  The script for Honk is very clever, witty and very funny.  I found the score a little dated but that is by no means any reflection on Mid Cheshire Musical Theatre Company.  If any society out there is looking for a show that is daring and different then I’d definitely recommend Honk!

Honk was excellently directed by Joanna Milborne.  She had great and innovative ideas and concepts and the cast carried them off, perfectly.  I loved how Joanna pushed the boundaries of theatre and made the audience use their minds and imagination to explore; all whilst listening to the hilarious script and wonderful singing.  Joanna set design was excellent.  Who would’ve thought to have a real pool in the middle of the Grange Theatre, along with a jetty, Lilli pads, giant sofas and much much more.  The set, along with the lights and costumes, made the show visually stunning.  A huge congrats to all involved in these areas.  It’s not really hard to see why Joanna is a two-time NODA nominee (and one-time winner) for Best Director and choreographer.  Her direction allows the audience to be transcended into the location of the lake, whilst believing the large adult cast to be birds and animals with three-dimensional characters.  The choreography was great and very sympathetic to the piece and the characters involved.  The choreography was used in way which highlighted the humour and comedic effects.  Well done Joanna!

The costumes for Honk were coordinated by Sue Chatt.  The costumes were brilliant and allowed the cast to remain as humans (for dance and staging purposes), but in a clever way which showed the audience which character was which, so that the audience could understand effectively. 

For me the lighting was equally great.  I loved the use of gobo’s and colours used throughout.  The lights were very sympathetic to the action and helped accentuate the action without distracting from it.  There were a few slight first night nerves with the follow spot at the beginning of the show but I doubt if the audience even noticed.

Sound was generally very good.  There was a slight issue with one of the head mics but that was very quickly rectified.  I really liked the balance between the orchestra, cast and the audience.  I thought that the mix was very good and not overpowering at all. 

Peter England was in charge of the orchestra.  The band played well throughout, and I particularly liked the reed section.  I don’t know if it was because the band were onstage behind the cast or that the band and cast needed more rehearsal time together, but I felt that there was a negative gap in timing between the two.  I wasn’t sure if the cast were rushing ensemble numbers (it was opening night) or the band were sticking strictly to the tempo in the score, but I felt that the band could’ve upped the tempo a little more to move the action along at a quicker pace – the cast were certainly up for it.  As it was opening night, perhaps they will gel together for the rest of the run?

The props were great!  I particularly loved the Crème Egg teapot and appreciated all of the hard work that has gone into the props.  For me, the lighting, sound, props, set and costumes made this show visually excellent!

Ugly was played by Chris James Wright – an excellent actor who stayed in role throughout!  I adored Chris’ portrayal of this role, particularly his use of physicality and embodiment of character.  Chris also has a great voice (an excellent radio voice) and a very good singing voice also.  Chris was excellent as Ugly and the audience felt sympathy for his character.  Chris also has great stage presence and was much loved by the audience!  In my opinion, Chris was an excellent choice for this role – Well done Chris!

Cat was brilliantly played by Stuart Dutton.  I loved Stuart’s portrayal of this role, particularly the physicality and use of voice; which makes the audience believe that we’re watching a cat onstage.  Stuart has a great vocal range and a beautiful tone to his singing voice – he had a great rapport with the other cast members.  I loved the Tango dancing during ‘Together’.

Catherine Baddeley played the role of Ida, Ugly’s mother.  Catherine’s portrayal of this role was great.  I particularly loved her accent and use of voice.  Catherine has a great singing voice also.  This score showed off her beautiful tones throughout.  I can’t wait to see Catherine in a different role with Mid Cheshire!

Andy Jordan’s ‘Drake’ was a great partnership with ‘Ida’.  He was a brilliant Ying to Catherine’s Yang – great casting!  Andy has very good stage presence and great comic timing.  He also has a nice singing voice too!  This brilliant script was able to show off Andy’s comic timing and acting ability very well.

It would be unfair of me to mention any of the other large ensemble by name as I wouldn’t want to leave anyone out.  I felt that the cast were very strong singers, particularly the soprano’s.   It potentially could’ve been embarrassing for an adult to go on stage and pretend to be a bird or an animal, as I’m sure in the beginning of rehearsals it was, however, it’s clear that a lot of hard work, dedication and confidence building has gone into this production.  I loved the small idiosyncrasies that each character had that made them a whole character.  I loved the physicality that the cast had that helped convey their character.  I promise you that nothing was missed and unappreciated by me, whether you had a large role or not.  A special mention has to go to ‘Warts and All’- a brilliant and visual delight!  Well done to the large cast and backstage team on a brilliant production that dares to be different and pushes the boundaries of norm.  Of course, there were a few minor errors (first night nerves) but nothing that distracted from the action.  I sincerely hope that you get the large audience that this production deserves and wish you the very best of luck for the rest of the run!

Thank you to Mid Cheshire once again for your very kind hospitality.  I look forward to your next (youth) production of Joseph.

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