Legally Blonde

A virtually full theatre on a Thursday evening must have excited the cast of Legally Blonde, a musical I have never previously seen before.

This production was full of enthusiastic performers, with a good set which was maneuvered effectively around the stage by the cast members themselves.

In the starring role was Gemma Pobjoy (Elle). She must have been exhausted by the end as she never leaves the stage and yet she managed to capture the character superbly, full of energy from start to finish with some very tricky dance routines with still enough breath to sing over a dozen songs throughout the show.

It was a shame that on a number of occasions the orchestra appeared to be in direct competition with the soloists and lyrics were lost.

Stephen Brannan did well as the heart warming nice guy ‘Emmett Forrest’ while Jim Markey was a very experienced ‘Professor Callahan’ who was the villain of the show.

I thought that beautician ‘Paulette’ played by Helen Fruin provided several of the highlights of this production and in fact she nearly stole the show, especially in the beauty salon.

Gina Omerod as ‘Brooke Wyndam’ the fitness instructor was perfectly cast and with the dancers gave a slick routine with skipping ropes that was clever and well choreographed. She was equally matched by Kellie Lucken (Vivienne) and Mark Haumann (Warner) both of whom gave creditable charactizations.

There were many smaller parts but all essential to the story line and all worked well as a team. I did like the Delta Nu young ladies. You were very impressive.

One of my favourite numbers was ‘Ireland’. At one point I thought you were going to perform Riverdance. The chorus lads and lassie’s provided great support to the main cast and must have been drilled to within an inch of their lives by the demanding choreographer, Alison Latchford.

This was a good show, with splendid choreography and an energy and enthusiasm that drew everyone into the action, including Rufus and Bruiser. The costumes were good and hairstyles appropriate for the era.

Sound was an issue at this performance, with some microphones being brought up late, occasional feedback and some performers whose amplification failed altogether.

Direction was average and more attention given to the finer points of detail, for example, how to work with clients in a hair salon, would have made this production outstanding. Excellent choreography in the company numbers and an experienced cast will be what the audience will remember.

This was a good production with some outstanding moments. Well done to you all.

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