Musicals Unplugged

I do enjoy going to see a concert. It allows people who perhaps would not want a leading role in a scripted show to be more than willing to sing a few lines of a song. This show by Brownhills Musical Theatre Company offered this and so much more.

The subtitle for this show was ‘Songs in Unexpected Shoes’ and this threw up many surprises. With female members singing male solos and vice versa, children singing the parts of adults and vice versa to name but a few. The only thing that didn’t surprise me was the quality of performance delivered by the company, it was a new venue for Brownhills, which offered up new challenges.  They decided to perform the show in ‘Cabaret Style’ with audiences seated at tables, the cast made full use of this with a smaller stage positioned in the heart of the audience and many songs delivered in amongst them, it is fair to say that the audience certainly felt part of the show….some more than others!

The harmonies from the whole company never disappoint, credit to Musical Director Alex Priestley for his dedication to the cause. The musical numbers were enhanced by tight, well-rehearsed choreography routines, adapted to suit all ages and abilities on stage. It was a lovely touch by the society to include their Youth Section in this show, they performed with confidence and showed us that the future of BMTC is in safe hands.  I must make mention of a couple of the numbers – ‘Hello’ from The Book of Mormon, which opened the second half was performed by a group of ladies with great timing and execution. Later, Kian Kirwin, James Price and Alex Woolliscroft gave a rendition of ‘Gotta Get A Gimmick’ from Gypsy,  - there are some moments when I am pleased not to be too close to the action! This was a real favourite with the audience and certainly one of the highlights of the evening. There were some fine solo vocals throughout the concert, too many to mention individually, however, there was the odd occasion when the sound levels were not quite right when the soloists were singing against the whole company, a technical issue, not the fault of the performers.

A lot of thought had gone into using the entire room for the show, something that Kelly & Richard Tye were conscious of doing as Directors, the whole production flowed from one item to the next, and no matter where you were sitting, there was always going to be something happening close to you.

When the Prince of Wales Theatre closed, societies have had to adapt to a new ‘stage’, Brownhills are one of those societies. However, it goes to prove that if the stage is taken away, the talent still remains wherever you get to perform. Congratulations to everyone involved in another great show.

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