Our House

Our House is a musical I had heard so much about yet never seen so I was really looking forward to this production. I thought that if anyone could do justice to this show it was the young people of Centre Stage Company and I wasn’t wrong. From the lively opening scene to the final curtain, this must be one of the most energetic productions I have ever seen and the cast was obviously loving every minute of being on stage.

Joe Casey is fresh out of school and takes the girl of his dreams, Sarah, out on a date.  His efforts to impress her result in the police being called and at this point we see Joe’s future from two different angles. The show takes us through the complexities of youth and how making wrong decisions, even at such a young age, can shape our future. The score, featuring the songs of Madness, kept our feet tapping as we watched Joe go down two different paths, which eventually appear to come together before we are whisked back to his sixteenth birthday for a fantastic finale.

Wesley Ruthven is a young man with considerable talent and he gave a terrific performance as Joe Casey, acting, singing and dancing his way seamlessly between the two sides of the character, with some very quick costume changes for good measure.  Very well done.

On the evening of this review the role of Sarah was well played by Amber Brewster, a young lady with good acting skills and a very powerful singing voice.

Charlotte Allin gave a suitably emotional performance as Joes’ Mum Kath with Reece Hannigan (who soldiered on despite feeling under the weather) as his deceased Dad, always in the background watching as his son made his own mistakes.

Well done to Logan Cripps in his dual roles as bad influence Reecey, and law student Callum.  Beau Cripps as Emmo and James Player as Lewis made a good comedy duo and Charlie Moody was well cast as Mr Pressman the property developer.

Ava Lee as Billie, Faye Dower as Angie and Sophie Street as Heather completed the line up of principals and all played their roles well. There were no weak links in this production.

The creative team really brought out the best in their young cast.  A special mention here for Choreographer Laura Dodd who put the cast through their paces resulting in some fantastic dance scenes.

The band, conducted by Mark Ager, hardly had time to draw breath between the musical numbers and as has come to be expected, provided excellent accompaniment.

The scenery, built in house, complimented the action although I’m not altogether sure about the black and white doors. I must admit it took me a while to work out their relevance, having not read the director’s introduction prior to curtain up. 

That apart this was an excellent production and my congratulations to all involved.

Thank you for inviting me and for your hospitality.

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