Miscast : A Concert

Having spent my Saturday afternoon in Carlisle with StagedRight Youth Theatre, I made the journey to the Solway Hall in Whitehaven for another concert in the evening, this time with Whitehaven Theatre Of Youth performing their revue, Miscast - a ‘Roles We’ll Never Play’ type concert where performers select songs outside their typical casting bracket – which could be anything from gender swapping to aging up or down, the possibilities are endless.

I was taken aback during the opening number, Seize The Day from Disney’s Newsies, by the clarity and crispness of the vocals of the group.  The balance between backing tracks and voice was very well mixed and got the programme off to a terrific start. 

The first soloist of the night was Grace Savage, with a take on Hamilton’s King George III’s – You’ll Be Back.  It’s a tricky song to perform in a concert setting out of context but Grace made a fine job of it.   Straight off the back of this, and continuing the gender swapping theme, Sam Dinwoodie, Bobby &  Charlie Donald and Malachy McLean took to the stage as Grecian Goddesses direct from Disney’s Hercules performing I Won’t Say I’m In Love.  If confidence was to be bottled and prescribed by the NHS, they needn’t look much further than these four!

There were so many other highlights during the evening - from Warren Neaves conquering his nerves to belt out I Know I Have A Heart from Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Cinderella,  Bobby Donald’s characterful soliloquy of The History Of Wrong Guysfrom Kinky Boots and not forgetting Layton Telford’s solo dance which inspired the entire audience.

The show was simply staged, putting the Solway Hall’s in house video screen to good use to give us suggestions of scenes and various themes.  It’s a pity that during a few of the numbers, the technology wasn’t playing ball as there were several apparent glitches. Thankfully it didn’t distract too much from the action downstage.

There was some great choreographic moments from the company with the senior girls staying on trend with a routine from the recent Wonka film, to the junior girls effervescent Me Ol’ Bamboo from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.   

The show was compered superbly by WTOY matriarch Maria Morton.  On the subject, I must give a special mention to the leaders and helpers of Whitehaven Theatre of Youth.  During the second act they all made a surprise appearance on stage much to the delight of the audience and the youth members (who were allowed out front to watch!)  performing 500 Miles (I’m Gonna Be).  It goes without saying how much time and dedication goes into running a performing arts group, far surpassing a ‘hobby’ in fact, and I have so much admiration for each of you, giving up your time to ensure all those kids have an outlet to shine.

The most memorable turn of the night was by Warren, Sam, Josh and Tom.  Outrageous and fabulous in equal measure, the audience members went absolutely wild at their interpretation of One Night Only from Dreamgirls.  The quartet weren’t just confident though– there was a bigger force at play here.  I grew up as a theatre kid in Cumbria and know first-hand how unforgiving those not into ‘showbiz’ can be. So for the four of them to stand on that stage living their best lives and to perform like they did, at their age, is testament to the admirable culture and ethos that Whitehaven Theatre Of Youth is cultivating.  In amongst the thundering applause I couldn’t help zooming out to take in this amazing moment of acceptance from a packed crowd – keep doing what you are doing WTOY,  be who you want to be and never let others tell you who you have to be!

Congratulations to you all for a fantastic, thoroughly entertaining concert and I hope you have a brilliant rehearsal period for your next production – Frozen Jr!

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