Singin' in the Rain Jr

Singin’ in the Rain Jr ... a musical staged and performed by the students from Ormskirk School, Wigan Road, Ormskirk on Thursday 16th October, 2025 

Singing in the Rain Jr ... a musical set in Hollywood in the late 1920’s and centres on the transition from ‘silent films’ to “talkies” and the struggle of two silent film stars as the try to adapt to the new era!  Penned by Betty Comden and Adolph Green, with lyrics by Arthur Freed and music by Nacio Herb Brow... the stage musical was adapted from the 1952 movie of the same name and closely adheres to the original movie narrative. In 2007 ’Singin’ in the Rain’ was ranked as the fifth greatest motion picture of all time ... who can forget one of the most iconic dance routines ever, sang and danced by the incredible Gene Kelly to the title track... ‘Singin' in the Rain’.  

THIS MUSICAL THAT COMES WITH A MAJOR EXPECTATION... AN EXPECTATION THAT PUTS MANY SOCIETIES OFF, LET ALONE A SCHOOL SOCIETY! The title song Singin’ in the Rain/the dance routine made iconic by Gene Kelly, his lamp post all sung in the ‘RAIN’ and it’s just that, the ‘RAIN’ that makes societies shy away from staging it ... but not Ormskirk School! The rain flowed in misty torrents across the entire width of a tiered stage, part of which had been covered with a rubberised matting. Puddles appeared, splashing occurred, creating and enhancing the choreographed routine!  It’s the last scene in Act One which allowed the stage crew to instantly ‘push off’ the puddles into a grid situated across the front of the tier, ending up in a trough beneath the stage ... REMARKABLE!  I can’t remember hearing a bigger ovation for many years, if at all, from this ‘full house’ at the end of the scene ... ‘deafening’ and ‘very lengthy’!  PS it required a seventeen page ‘Risk Assessment’ ... but well worth the effort... IMPRESSIVE!

Production Team... tasked with bringing this show to stage, arranging and dealing with the above, plus a massive cast of almost ninety was Paula Carter and Sarah Simm (Directors); Mille Gore (Musical Director); Emily Mayne, Izzy Chapple and Abbey Turner (Choreography) and what a fabulous job they made of it all! Just navigating safety, a cast of almost 90 is challenge in itself, but with everything else thrown into the mix... we really do need to give credit where credits due! A well-chosen, totally inclusive cast, were well rehearsed and dealt well with all aspects of the direction, a total credit to everyone involved. The support actors, the ensemble supported the principles ever so well, they all looked happy and engaged, all achieved in just six weeks of rehearsals, much in their own time ... it just says everything about the production and commitment of all involved ... be very proud each and all.   

The Cast... I do get a little ‘ribbing’ about this, but I’ve always been of the opinion that if someone spends weeks/months rehearsing, then they should be named in a show report… so with ninety cast members this was MY challenge!  I’ll start with the principles, followed by Support roles, then the Ensemble. Full names will be used for the ‘principals’, first names for the support and ensemble actors. I am going to stick my neck out and selected MY showstealer and some of MY favourite characters.
Charlie Geldart took on the iconic lead role of ‘Don Lockwood’; Megan Lawson played ‘Kathy Seldon’, Ben Auriac played ‘Cosmo Brown’, Chloe Ainsworth played ‘Lina Lamont’, Katie Swift played ‘Dora’, Leon McEvoy played ‘RF Simpson’, Evie Anne Allen played ‘Zelda’, Ava Eccles played ‘Miss Dinsmore’, Layla Bell played ‘Roz’; Bobby Johnston played ‘Dexter’; Luca Pastor played ‘Broadway Melody Host’;  Amelia Nolan played a ‘teacher’ and Harley Disley played ‘Sam’.
Kathy’s Girls... played by Maddie, Neve, Charlotte, Elle, Amelia and Evie Anne.
Show Girls ... played by Abbey, Daisy, Eden, Evie, Isla, Solara, Daisy, Mia and Jess.
Stage Hands ... played by Harley, Daniel and Will. 
Ensemble included ...Daniel, Connor, Charlotte, Lyla, Evie, Courtney, Arwin, Elissa, Evie, Amelia, Jessica, Poppy, Ava, Hettie, Ava, Lucy, Freya, Charley, Erian, Faye, Anna, Max, Lilly, Layla, Hannah, Adelina, Jerry, Marni, Thea, Isobelle, Annie, Hugo, Felicity, Tess, Charlie, Evie Lee, Florence, Olivia, Annaliese, Natalia, Luna, Ruby, Lilli, Poppy, Eva, Seren, Anusha, Freya, Emilia, Bella, Anneka, Lily, Isla, Oscar and Jacob.

MY SHOWSTEALER... I really don’t think I can look any further than Charlie Geldart for this accolade! Charlie took on the lead role of Don Lockwood and looked like he was having the time of his life!  Confident, assured, wonderful stage presence, he really did ‘lead’ from the front! Good singing voice, good diction, good mannerisms and a great dancer, he worked well with Ben, Megan, Chloe and with all the cast really BUT, the icing on the cake was his performance of the iconic ‘Singing in the Rain’ number which was flawless! The audience’s reaction said it all... brought the house down... congrats Charlie be proud!  MY three favourite characters were Lina Lamont, Cosmo Brown and Kathy Seldon played by Chloe Ainsworth, Ben Auriac, Megan Lawson respectively. Well cast, confident, assured, all three creating their own wonderful individual characters whilst supporting Charlie and each other ever so well...  be very proud guys! If I may, just a ‘special mention’ for Chloe, this was the second time I’d had the privilege to see Chloe perform at Ormskirk School, this year ... two completely different roles and genres but what a job she made of both!  Loved the semi comedic way she took this role... that ‘squeaky high pitched’ voice, never faltered, yet I never missed a word... impressive ... heaven only knows what her voice was like on Saturday morning ... congrats Chloe great job. If I haven’t mentioned you as a favourite, please don’t think you weren’t noticed, as I said in my after-show meet with you guys ... ‘What makes a good show great’ - the ensemble and that includes the support actors... honestly you all ‘contributed’ to making this production the success that it was!

Staging/Set/Tech …I’ve spoken a great deal about the ‘rain’ which was amazing, so I don’t intend elaborating further, but every inch of that ‘tired stage’ plus its side platforms (one used as a dressing room the other the street/lap post addons) were used to their best advantage. Once again, the use of a ‘video wall’ opened up endless opportunities, all of which were taken and which enhanced the production greatly. Lighting was first rate, although I, along with a number of others, struggled with the cascade of lighting that ‘swept across the audience’ from time to time. Lighting/Set Design/Tech Lead was in the hands of Scott Makin and his ‘team of amazing magicians’ from Moonlight Events.  Sound was crystal clear; the taped tracks supporting/never overpowering the singers, all under the watchful eye of Dave Pearson (Ormskirk School).  

Costumes/Props...  the costumes were perfect for the production, many congratulations to the Costume Team... Amelia, Luca, Katie and Layla... 6th form students with Lisa Molyneux ‘seamstress’ for their hard work in producing and pulling together such an effective wardrobe.  Props... again, excellent quality and used really well. PS: nobody in Ormskirk should ever go wet this Winter with the amount of brightly coloured umbrellas that were either danced with or which were hung from the ceiling, they created a wonderful effect and feeling throughout the performance!

To sum up... putting this on stage must have been a challenge, a challenge that paid off and more! Congrats to those with the vision to create everything that went on especially the effective, amazing ‘Rain effect’, the choreographed dance that just went along with it and the amazing video wall projections... I just loved it, me and many others I would suggest!

Thanks, you so much for inviting my wife and I... we truly did enjoy every moment!  Thanks for the welcome and for allowing me to briefly chat with the cast post show... well done to everyone involved, this truly was an outstanding musical production that you all should be very proud of!

Stay safe, Keep well
Stronger Together

Jim Briscoe ...
NODA NW
District 6 Rep

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