Matilda Jr

A few years ago, I was lucky enough to see a production of “Matilda the Musical”in the West End of London with my grandchildren, which I thoroughly enjoyed, so I was really looking forward to seeing Pleasure Folk Junior’s version of this show. Well happily, I can honestly say, I enjoyed this production just as much if not more as not only did I recognize some of the performers from my previous visits, but the ability and talent of the cast was outstanding and the energy and enjoyment coming from the stage was palpable to the audience producing a buzz in the atmosphere of the auditorium.

Matilda the Musical has Music and Lyrics written by Tim Minchin from a book by Dennis Kelly which is based on the extremely popular Roald Dahl 1998 novel named Matilda. The show was first produced by the Royal Shakespeare Company in Stratford upon Avon running for 12 weeks from November 2010 to January 2011. It then opened in the West End of London in November 2011, and then onto Broadway New York in April 2013. The London production won 7 Olivier awards including Best New Musical which, at the time, was the highest number of awards awarded to any show.

The narrative centres on an amazing little five-year-old girl named Matilda Wormwood, she was part of a dysfunctional family who were cruel to her and found her a nuisance, so they ignored and neglected her. Matilda loved reading, had a sharp intellect| and the gift of telekinesis. She finds solace in visiting the library and reading all the wonderful books she can find, and she makes up wonderful, detailed stories which she reads to Mrs Phelps the librarian. Matilda’s parents decided to send her to school thinking it would be a punishment, but Matilda is excited as she wishes to learn all she can. There she meets lots of new friends but unfortunately, she comes up against the tyrannical headteacher Miss Trunchbull, who in the end is no match for Matilda. She also forms a special bond with her teacher, Miss Honey who she helps reclaim her stolen inheritance and life which Matilda becomes part of.

Once again Director Gemma Briscoe produced an excellent show with the help of members of the production team which included Musical Director, Marley Ellis-Brennan and Choreographer Liz Wainwright, Vocal Coach, Emily Mayne and Dance Captains Emily Mayne and Millie Pendleton. Gemma had assembled an incredibly talented cast which included Mia Beqo in the leading role of Matilda. Mia gave us an outstanding secure performance, oozing confidence, using, and owning the stage to its full potential. Her interactions with other characters were believable and her dialogue could be heard, which was especially important, for anyone taking on this role, as Mia needed to be a colourful interesting storyteller, an aim she met very well.Then we had Charlie Geldart who understood his role very well as the indomitable Miss Trunchbull, getting onboard with this over-the-top character, and producing wonderful facial expressions with good intonation when speaking his dialogue and his comedic timing was spot on. Eve McBride had got to the heart of her character as Miss Honey who was the opposite of Miss Trunchbull. The sincerity she was able to produce in her role and empathy for the children really came over to the audience. Hannah Arnold had maturity in her characterisation as Matilda’s friend and support Mrs. Phelps the librarian and you really felt she was anxious for the next instalment of the stories that Matilda told her. Toby Wainwright and Charlotte Proctor as Mr and Mrs. Wormwood, Matilda’s parents, made a good comedic couple, playing well together and were believable in their roles. Then we had Eden Wainwright as the Acrobat performing some wonderful acrobatics and Ben Auriac as her partner the Escapologist. Both did excellent jobs in helping Matilda interpret her stories for the audience and Mrs. Phelps. There were also two nicely performed comedic cameo roles from Darcy Main as Rudolpho and Joel Morley as Sergei. Then we had Matilda’s school friends who play an especially important part in the success of this show. They all performed particularly well with no weak links, some also had important solo vocals, which were sung securely with confidence. These talented children include Cianan Gillen as Michael, Scarlett Simm as Lavender, Jasper Simm as Bruce, Daisy Swift as Alice, Orla Street- Reeve as Amanda, Hattie Mahood as Hortensia, Cooper Flannery-Hillman as Tommy, Jacob Mitchell is Nigel and Benjamin Claridge as Eric. The remaining members of the ensemble were supportive of the principals, who appeared to be really enjoying themselves, performing with gusto and producing some wonderful characters. Every child on stage seemed to be fully on board, working towards the success of the production whilst still enjoying themselves which was especially apparent during the number Revolting Children, as they all appeared to relish performing that number.

The Band played brilliantly, and it was wonderful to hear that the youngest member was 16 years old, the eldest 20 years old. They supported the cast on stage excellently and played with a level of sound exactly right for the performers. I was extremely impressed with their talents and expertise. They included: Musical Director and Keyboard One - Marly Ellis-Brennan, Keyboard Two- Tess Raynor,Drums - Jess Smith, Guitar- Benjamin Lawson, and Bass Guitar - Jack Elder.

Choreography by Liz Wainwright was of a particularly good standard and well thought out, fitting and enhancing the theme of the production. The cast performed the choreography exceptionally well as it looked as if it was complicated as movements and routines were not uniform, there was different choreography performed around the stage which was highly effective and looked very natural for this production.

The stage area was used to its full potential with the main stage area used as the schoolroom. The library and the Wormwood’s home were two particularly well-designed smaller sets placed to each side of the proscenium. The library set was very artistic and a lot of work must have gone into the design and painting and both added authenticity to the show. Well done to the stage crew for their efforts which allowed the show moved smoothly throughout the performance.  There were some excellent props used which dressed the performance area very well. Costumes provided by Becky Coghlan, Dorothy Prothero, and Liz Wainwright were, as is usual for Pleasure Folk, exactly right and the adult character costumes suited the personality of the roles very well. Sound and lighting operated by Gemma Briscoe and Michael Chambers was very proficient throughout the performance and enhanced the action and atmosphere on stage.

I must also say well done and a big thank you to all the Chaperones who obviously worked tirelessly backstage looking after the children lead by Sue Briscoe, Pleasure Folks Safeguarding Officer.

Congratulations to everyone involved in this outstanding production, including all the front of house workers led by Martin Jones who welcomed the audience with a smile and friendly greeting. Thank you very much for a lovely afternoon and making me welcome.

 

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