Honk!

There was certainly nothing ‘poultry’ about this production and Mellow Dramatics can certainly ‘Hold their heads up high’.

Honk follows the story of ‘Ugly’, a rather unusual looking ‘duckling’. The little bundle of feathers, who just wants to be loved, gets lured away from his family by a tom cat intent on having Duck a l'Orange for his supper! Escaping the cooking pot, Ugly tries to find his way back to the duck pond meeting many more feathered friends along the way. All seems lost until his transformation into a beautiful swan.

I have to say that this, for me, is one of Drewe and Stiles better musicals. Honk has a gorgeous story line, great music, laugh-out-loud dialogue and brilliant scope for creative staging.

The set worked well in the space and the use of levels added interest. The pull across gauze and back cloths were a little distracting, particularly when they didn’t meet in the middle. Also I missed having actual eggs on stage for the ducklings to hatch out of, but I do understand that space can be an issue. The costumes were chosen well in relation to the variety of animals being portrayed. The lighting was used effectively and although the sound was good it did seem as if the orchestra was in another room with the door open, the sound just drifting onto stage. This meant that on occasions they were over powered by the singing.

Once again I really enjoyed the vocal sound produces by this society, particularly in the full company numbers, great expression and harmonies were created throughout. However, the full cast scenes were a little static, more like a choir than the chorus in a musical. Find creative ways to use your company to embellish the story and add interest.

Ross Harris, as Ugly, did a fantastic job, strong characterisation and vocals brought the little ‘duckling’ to life and the audience warmed to him as soon as he hatched! Two other standout characters were Queenie and Lowbutt (Natasha Ingham and Suzanne Huthmacher). These two worked so well together, they were both character driven and very funny. I loved the way Queenie used her headscarf as ears, a brilliant example of how to create hints of the animal you are playing without being too obvious. Bullfrog, Joe Bromfield, was extremely likeable and gave a strong and funny performance.

This was definitely a feel good show, presented well. Well done to all of the cast, crew and musicians!

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