Legally Blonde the Musical

The energy and enthusiasm of the large cast in this musical, based on Amanda Brown’s novel about her time at Stanford Law School, was palpable from opening number to the finale. Singing from the whole company, both chorus and principals, was first class and the choreography was step perfect. Natalie Sutherland in the lead role of Elle Woods was magnificent, portraying the change from dumb blonde to gifted lawyer with great skill and possessing a great singing voice. The two men in her life - the social climbing Warner Huntington III (Brandon Swain) and the studious Emmett Forrest (Matthais Kremer) - portrayed the contrasting characters excellently and it was obvious from the audience reaction who they were rooting for them to win Elle’s affection! Caroline Macpherson as the beautician Paulette Buonufonte had the audience in hoots of laughter with her delightful comic performance and her rendition of “Ireland” was outstanding. Garry Black as Professor Callahan had the “win at any cost” attitude of the character to a T which was reflected in his strong rendition of the number “Blood in the Water”. Alison Ozog as Brooke Wyndham, the client Elle came to successfully defend, was another strong performance – how she could skip and dance whilst singing “Whipped Into Shape” without seeming to be out of breath was amazing! Strong support was given by Sian Noble (Pilar), Ashley Fraser (Margot) and Amy Crook (Serena) as Elle’s close friends. Also by Lauren Walker (Vivienne Kensington), Andrew Gill (Kyle the Magnificent), David Saunders (Sundeep Padamadan), Amelia Savage-Lowden (Enid Hoopes) and Callum Mcleod (Aaron Schulz and an over-the toply camp Carlos). Mention too must be made of the canine cast members Coco (Rufus) and Logan (Bruiser Woods) who behaved impeccably on stage and elicited an “Awww” from the audience at their every appearance. Costuming was colourful and appropriate to the period and characters. The large set was relatively simple and again colourful. Skillful handling by the stage crew made for smooth and quick scene changes. Well done everyone at Inverness Musical Theatre. The standing ovation from the almost full house, first night audience was richly deserved.

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