Sister Act

Although I attended on opening night, Tuesday, I know the tech day had not gone according to plan with a 5 hour wait for a fire alarm to be attended meaning the opening night was in reality the dress rehearsal.

The staging worked well and looked very effective but for me with such a large chorus, scene changes could’ve been a lot sharper had the chorus been used to remove and bring on set and props. Gary Harvey had certainly cast the show well and his direction on characterisation worked well for each member of the cast. There were great props and costumes which suited the characters well. There were a few hiccups on costumes which I know were down to the lack of dress rehearsal. The lighting and sound had a few issues but nothing major although the balance between band and cast in the opening number favoured the band but this was quickly fixed by the sound crew.

The band sounded great under David Wilson’s baton and David had clearly worked hard with the cast as there were some gorgeous harmonies with the nuns and the principals.

The choreography was creative and worked well with the big and varied ability cast. I loved the boys number “Lady in the Long Black Dress” and also “I Could Be That Guy”. The Company numbers looked very effective and were delivered well by the cast.

Charlotte Greaves was fantastic as Deloris the nightclub singer who due to witnessing a murder has to hide in a nunnery. Her vocals were absolutely stunning and she certainly looked the part. She delivered her lines with great facial expressions and sharp comedy timing and later with warmth towards her sisters. Her numbers with crystal clear diction were delivered to perfection.

Matthew Gavin was brilliant as Eddie delivering a stunning performance with gorgeous vocals. His acting including his nervousness was totally believable.

Gareth Johns as Curtis was both threatening in his style with good vocals and played well with the other gang members. Pablo (Elliot Longworth), TJ (Sam Hill) and Joey (Alex Latham) complimented each other in their differences and put in good performances as the 3 idiot hoodlums. “When I Find my Baby” and “Lady in the Long Black Dress” were well delivered with funny lines accentuated. Matthew James was very good as Monsignor O’Hara with a mischievous side in his characterisation that worked well.

The nuns collectively were fabulous and Jo Burton as Sister Mary Patrick put in a lovely well rounded performance with equally lovely vocals. Lee Slater as Sister Mary Lazarus was totally hilarious especially in her rapping scene and her dry delivery of dialogue.

Nadia Parkinson was fantastic as Sister Mary Robert with touching acting and fantastic vocals. I love the song “The Life I Never Led” and Nadia delivered this with gorgeous vocals.

This was a fabulous feel good show from start to finish which despite the Sunday experience came together extremely well and everyone involved should be very proud of their performances. I went home happy and singing the wonderful numbers.

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