Joseph and his Amazing Technicolour dream coat

Living up to its historic reputation, Joseph and his Amazing Technicoloured Dream coat, presented by Five towns Theatre at the Stoke Rep, lived up to its colourful and timeless top slot in musical popularity. Presented by their newly formed youth section this production did not disappoint as the group performed Webbers biblical adaptation with enthusiasm, confidence and bags of energy. With a set not dissimilar to the Kenwright tour we were treated to a well-staged version of this classic tale.

Leading the cast and telling the story with maturity was the narrator Jenny Perry, a competent vocalist who engaged both the audience and the other cast members throughout. I adored the opening with the choir sat around her. The centre figure, Joseph, was portrayed by an equally competent and likeable Ben Birkett. There was a great lightness and humour in his performance and soared with ease through the familiar and popular songs. Supported by a young cast of all-rounders you could almost forget that these were school children and believe them to be experienced performers. Special mention must also go to Jude Leath-yates who took on both the iconic role of Pharaoh and head brother Reuben. This showed his diversity as a performer, although at times a little too larger than life meaning focus was drawn from the story-telling and other characters.

With some fabulous costumes and intricate colourful lighting the show looked good and the stage was used well. I must say I did miss the singing Camel though! The cast shone in the bigger more upbeat numbers with well drilled choreography and an energy I wish I could bottle. As a sung through show it is important to work on diction as parts of the story were sometimes lost and the balance of sound meant that at times the company outweighed the principals. Always think that if you are completely new to the story what are the important parts that you need to hear.

The appreciative audience obviously enjoyed this upbeat musical and the cast were deserving of the applause received. Well done to all who made this show such a success.

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