Musical 5 Tunes

‘Musical 5 Tunes’

Compiled by Ali Turrell and Sarah Hodges

Group: Melksham Music and Drama

Performance date: 1st September 2017

Reviewed by Dee Way, District 14 Representative, South West Region

This show comprised five songs taken from each of four West End musicals: ‘Book of Mormon’, ‘Rock of Ages’, ‘Jersey Boys’, and ‘Shrek: The Musical’. This kind of show is a lot of work in planning and choosing the songs to include.  Excellent preparation of the production was evident with key songs selected from each show and the slick changes of setting, performers, mood, lighting and sound. The songs were very well chosen as suiting the talented singers within the group with a good variety of mood and style.  It was helpful that the songs were performed with a brief synopsis of each story putting each song in context, so that those in the audience who were less familiar with each musical could follow the twists of the stories.  This was very effective.

The setting for each show was different, as the symbols of each show lit at the back to indicate the change of musical. ‘Jersey Boys’ just had microphones of stands while ‘Rock of Ages’ set up the nightclub scene with tables and stools and ‘Shrek included a turning castle tower.  The performers costumes were excellent in reflecting the variety of musicals chosen, while the mood varied from high energy to slow and thoughtful, giving the audience a great range of music – and musical – to appreciate.  The character acting was extremely very well done while the singing and dance routines were very effective. 

The technical side of the production was very good, with well co-ordinated changes of lighting and sound, and the use of the balcony was lovely!  Once or twice the music recordings were a little loud for the lower singers, but I am sure this was remedied for the rest of the run. 

The choreography and movement throughout the show was very well thought out and rehearsed.  Congratulations are due to all those involved. The changes in timing and mood were very well done and the energy of those performing onstage was remarkable. 

Overall, the first night of this compilation show was great fun and very well put together and performed.  All the choreography worked very well and the production was really well rehearsed and presented. The singing by the lead singers was outstanding while the chorus made the entire show enormously entertaining to watch.  Congratulations to all involved!

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