Phoenix Through the Ages 1953 – 2023

Seventy years of bringing entertainment to the people of Portsmouth is definitely a cause for celebration. Phoenix Players’ Chairman Valerie Bird bravely took on the task of pulling together and directing Phoenix Through the Ages 1953 to 2023, which gave us a flavour of the years that have passed by and the group’s productions in that time.

Book-ended by two Coronations, this was a period of great change and our genial host and compere, Peter Clarke was most adept at getting the audience to respond to his (sometimes terrible) jokes while regaling us with lots of interesting facts and introducing the songs and sketches.

Sensibly the stage was kept as a simple black box, with furniture and props brought on as required. Stage Manager Paul Impey and his crew made short work of the scene changes, which kept the show romping along at a good pace. Lighting (Andy Impey) and sound were good throughout, and there were no problems hearing everyone. Some bright and sparkly costumes were used to good effect, especially during the chorus numbers – all credit to Valerie Bird and Stine Impey for raiding the company wardrobe.

There was a nicely varied selection of chorus and solo songs chosen to represent the seven decades, and brought back lots of memories. Everyone gave it their all, bringing the numbers to life with great enthusiasm. For my money, “Razzle Dazzle” came across the best with some good, well-executed choreography. Chris Wrein sounded particularly good, accompanying his numbers on the guitar. The soundtracks used varied in quality with some sounding a little muffled, and I felt that the numbers that were delivered a cappella might have benefited from some accompaniment to help the singers.

The sketches came from many sources, but my personal favourites were the ones from Victoria Wood, who would also have been 70 years old this year. The two “Young Love” sketches were touchingly well acted by Joe Cox and Sophie Castle. I’ve seen “Groupies” done before, but casting the two avid followers as rather demure, elderly ladies was inspired – nice performances by Jo Webb and Valerie Bird. My star performance prize of the evening goes to the redoubtable Irene Skelton (longest serving member of the company) for delivering the hilarious “Tea Dance” monologue to perfection. The short Sherlock Holmes story in Act 2, was interesting and well-constructed. While it was performed by consummate actors Danny McCrohon and Patric Howe as Holmes and Watson, ably assisted by Amanda Saunders and Erin Corrigan as Mrs Hudson and Elizabeth, it felt a little out of place and overlong.

This was a thoroughly enjoyable evening that left us feeling lighter in spirit and looking forward to what this diverse company will bring us in the years to come. Thank you, Phoenix Players - I wish you a very happy birthday and many more to come!

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