...in concert

One might say that this seems a strange title ‘…in concert’ but, it was indeed ‘a Concert’ and looking at the diversity of items in the programme it would be extremely problematic to come up with a different title – that’s my theory anyway!  The four piece band was to the back and side of the stage and back projections depicting the song and its origin, if applicable, were displayed. This was fine when the whole stage was in use, but for soloists, the ‘Tabs’ were drawn and this information was lacking - although it was in the programme, but it was too dark to see it at the time. Costumes were simple, black outfits for both men and women with the addition of a large pink flower for the ladies and pink ties for the men (the varying lengths of their ties really made me smile – sorry!).  There were fifteen items in Act One and the same number in Act Two all of which were deserving of praise. The singing of soloists, duetists, small ensembles and the full chorus, with the addition of some well executed movement, was exemplary and I couldn’t possibly mention them all. I will however, just pick out a few of my favourite highlights. ‘Under Pressure’, a tribute to David Bowie and Queen, was a rousing opening and ‘Up Where We Belong’ from ‘An Officer and a Gentleman’ saw Dave Adey (the Musical Director and Keyboard player) join Jan Outram on stage for what was a superb and moving rendition – I loved it. The medley from ‘Fiddler on the Roof’ was wonderful and included some lovely solos and duets. I enjoyed ‘Run, Freedom, Run’ and Sarah Jackson’s singing and delivery of ‘Climbing Uphill’ from ‘The Last Five Years’ was super as was that of Lucy Hassall and Megan Gibson in ‘Take Me or Leave Me’ from ‘Rent’ and how brilliant was ‘Hello!’ from ‘The book of Mormon’ by the Men, all decked out in white shirts with black ties and carrying ‘The Book’, it was just so funny. The medley from ‘Sister Act’ was great and ‘Don’t Worry About Me’ from ‘Frances’ sung by Jen Lewis, Elizabeth Brookes and Sarah Stone was absolutely beautiful, so moving. Jess Hutton’s singing of ‘Secret Love Song’ - ‘Little Mix’ was stunning as was that of Jen Lewis in ‘Total Eclipse of the Heart’ – Bonnie Tyler and ‘Second Hand White Baby Grand’ by Lucy Hassall. A brilliantly delivered ‘Motown Medley’ by soloists and the full company brought the whole concert to a rousing climax. Interspersed throughout the concert were items by the forty two members of the Junior section of the company and what an amazing group of talented youngsters they are. Their disciplined enthusiasm, along with their harmonious singing and simple but so effective movements in the four items they performed was truly splendid and the soloists in the various numbers - Robert, Abigail, Jacob, Charlotte, Danii, Krissy and Samuel were all terrific. The sketch ‘Step Aerobics’, originally performed by Victoria Wood, was outstandingly and hilariously portrayed by Sarah Stone, it was a truly fabulous tribute to her. I thoroughly enjoyed the whole evening and the cast, the production team and everyone involved should be very proud of their achievements.

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