Little Women

This was my first visit to this new company, and I was impressed with the talent that was on show. When you first entered the auditorium, the curtain was open, and you saw the set, which was absolutely brimming full of little details. The set fit the stage quite well and the space was appropriate for the piece. As soon as the music started you were pulled into 1800’s America. We were introduced to ‘Jo March’ played outstandingly well by Holly Kemeny and ‘Professor Bhaer’ played by Dave Arran, who brought a lovely calming feel to the character. You could instantly see how well these two worked together, and there was a great dynamic between the two. We were then introduced to the rest of the March Sisters – ‘Meg’ played by Catherine Joyce, ‘Amy’ played by Amelia Williams, and ‘Beth’ played by Celeste Godfrey-Coles. You could instantly see that these actresses had great chemistry and portrayed the sisters well. Cath as ‘Meg’ brought the calming influence to the 4, whereas ‘Amy’ played hilariously by Amelia who brought the chaos. ‘Beth’ played well by Celeste, was the quiet introverted sister. You could tell that these 4 women had worked extremely hard on their relationship and it showed throughout the whole show. 

We then got to meet ‘Marmie’, played maturely and elegantly by Justine Davies. Her two solos were lovely and pulled you in. ‘Laurie’ played by Jonathan Dobie, brought a playfulness to the role. He sang his solo well, and I could see some character development being made. ‘Aunt March’ played by Kim Darkin, brought some comedic relief to the piece, and Kim played her as stern yet kind. A lovely balance. ‘John Brook’ played by Dafydd Matthews-Williams, was a great addition, and Dafydd brought kindness to the role, which was a nice character trait. ‘Mr Lawerence’ Laurie’s grandfather, was played by ‘Carl Kester Williams. He played this well and had the balance between kind and scary. 

The addition of the ensemble was well thought out. It was great to see the stories that Jo had written played out in real time. There were some lovely turns by Nadia Witts, Caroline Minns, Pippa Stubbs and Isabelle Hillburn in the story of Clarissa and Rodrigo. The ensemble numbers added to the ambience of the show, and the space was used well, particularly for the beach scene. 

One of my highlights was the scene between Jo and Beth before Beth’s death. That was played out sweetly by Holly and Celeste. While Holly managed to blow us all away with her stirring rendition of ‘Astonishing’, one of the better-known numbers from the show. Another highlight was Professor Bhaer’s solo at the start of Act Two, Dave managed to convey the frustration and tenderness of someone falling in love very well. The whole production was lovely and left you with a warm feeling at the end. As I had not seen this show before I went in with no expectations but left with a smile. Thank you, SWAMP, for your lovely welcome and I look forward to your next production.

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