The Flames Of Injustice

I was warmly welcomed at Front of House by Kathy Sherlock.

This was a new and challenging musical written specifically for the society as they celebrate their centenary this year. Full length and based on historical events it brings to life the fires raging in Witham in 1828/9 and the tale of local farmhand, James Cooke. The excellent script was intriguing and fast moving and held the attention of the audience throughout. The music throughout contributed to the storyline and was superbly delivered.

The set was multi purpose depicting several scenes eg courthouse, pub, church with good entrances and exits.There were lots of props ie chairs, tables ,trestles moved on and off the stage to denote scene changes and the stage crew did a sterling job of moving around unobtrusively.

The opening number, Witham's Ablaze, was lively with the full company onstage.

Without exception, the entire cast played their characters with skill, interpreting the roles well and , in particular all the new songs some of which were quite demanding to sing.

There were stellar performances from Meg Abbott, as Betty Goodwin, Dannii Carr as James Cooke, Emma Loring as Dorcas Cooke, Justine Ephgrave as Harriet Hayles and Ben Rolph as Will Cooke. Emma and Justine had a strong duet “ This Can't Go On” which impressed.

Here were some excellent male actors, including Matthew Waldie as Rev Newman, Ron Howe, as MP Charles Western,Trevor Drury, as William Green, Tim Clarke as William Wright Luard, Gary Rolph as William Whale, Stewart Adkins as Peter DuCane III, Richard Herring as William Hutley and Michael Mundell-Poole as Franklyn Waters.

The strength of the male voices was evident in the rousing performances of “Decision Made” and “World On Fire”whilst Stewart Adkins ( DuCane) impressed with “The Bitter Pill”. Amy Pryce, as Sarah Hutley, Tracey Hackett as Charlotte Luard and Vicki Childs as Florence Whale displayed their singing talents in major numbers throughout. I especially enjoyed the duet” What Brought Me Here” between Amy Pryce, as Sarah, and Meg Abbott, as Betty. Betty and Will sang a tender duet in “Out Of The Shadows”

Will Hackett played a marvellous role as Edmund Potto and his wife, Kate Galley, as Lilian had a wonderfully sensitive solo of “ I Know It's Wrong” and Potto led the company in a poignant rendition of “Across The Horizon”

The audience loved the antics of the constables, both in the Charge of The Constables and in the opening of Act Two. Well done !

The lighting was good with a fantastic effect of James re-appearing as a ghost in Act Two and the sound levels were appropriate for the venue.

Costumes were most attractive and clearly reflected the early 19th century.

The band, led by Musical Director and Conductor Jessie Tabor were first class and provided excellent support to the cast on stage with the sound level just right. I congratulate Jessie on her work with both the band and the cast.

Choreography was in the extremely capable hands of Shelley Fenn and Gemma Gray and their hard work was reflected in great routines throughout.

Finally, my congratulations to Director, Rhianna Howard for her inspiration and direction in bringing this new musical to the stage so successfully.

The audience appeared to enjoy the evening and I certainly did. It was very refreshing to see a brand new production which showcased the many talents in this society.

Many congratulations to everyone involved both on and off stage.

You can all be proud of this production

 

 

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