Oklahoma!

The set was lovely with very functional set changes and great props. The stage crew worked hard to keep the set changes flowing and there were no long hold ups. The costumes were nice and suited the piece. The lighting and sound worked really well.

The Orchestra sounded wonderful under the baton of Helen Clarkson who had also worked really hard with the players including the chorus where harmonies were very effective. The choreography in the chorus numbers was kept simple due to the mixed age and of the players but also looked very effective.

The principals were lead by Jade Schofield who played Laurey with a crisp clear singing voice and feisty spirit. “Many a New Day” and “People Will Say we’re In Love” sounded wonderful. She played opposite Martin Cook who put in a strong performance as Curly. He was comfortable in his acting and had a lovely tone to his voice. Although individually they were well cast the thing I felt was missing was chemistry between the two. The lassoing by Martin looked really effective and clearly a while had been spent perfecting these skills.

Chris Stott and Katrina Heath played Will Parker and Ado Annie respectively and both put in really strong performances. Both delivered nice comic performances and had good delivery of dance moves and tone of voice.

Susan Jones put in a lovely performance as Aunt Eller the matriarch figure with nice vocals on “The Farmer and the Cowman” and comic delivery of dialogue where required.  Daniel Pardoe played Jud Fry but the delivery of some of his lines was lost in the accent. However it was a sinister portrayal that had a menace which was tangible every time he was on stage.

Richard Holley played Ali Hakim and his delivery and expressions although taking a while to tune into, worked really well.

The chorus worked hard and sounded lovely on the company numbers and the supporting principals fitted their roles well despite a couple of accent slips.

The show was well directed with good use of the full stage, timely set changes and creative use of props. Well done to all involved in the show which was a thoroughly entertaining production.

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