SISTER ACT

It is always encouraging when you go to the theatre to see a full house, there is nothing worse than rehearsing a show for 3 or 4 months and putting in a lot of hard work only for it to be seen by a handful of people. I am sure the company appreciated the full house on the evening I attended and the standing ovation at the end.

Sister Act tells the story of Deloris Van Cartier, a cabaret singer who witnesses a murder and is subsequently placed in a convent for hiding to protect her from her pursuers. During her time at the convent she helps out a little with the singing, much to the annoyance of the mother superior, but everything works out in the end. The culprits are caught and Deloris ends up leading the choir in front of his Holiness, the pope. This is a very funny musical with some excellent songs from the creative team of Alan Menken, (music) Glenn Slater, (lyrics) Cheri and Bill Steinkellner (book)

This production was in the very capable hands of Director, Anne Davenport who moved the show along at a cracking pace but without losing the more poignant scenes. I did think some of the scene changes could have been speeded up, perhaps the cast could have moved the props etc. This also led to the lighting not coming up straight away some of which didn’t quite work for me. I had no sound issues, but sometimes the diction wasn’t clear. Musical Director, Richard Davies led the company and especially the eclectic mix of nuns through some rousing, toe tapping numbers.

There were some strong performances, most notably from Donna Poynton as Deloris Van Cartier, she carried the show with ease and the stamina of a true professional, an outstanding performance. She was faultless and raised the standard from her fellow actors.

Mention must go to Malcolm Anglesea as Officer Eddie Souther he has a natural talent for musical theatre. His dream song “I could Be That Guy” was one of the many highlights of the show.

I must mention Lara Crawford as Sister Mary Lazarus who treated us to her rapping skills as well as providing the excellent choreography. Emily Highcock as Sister Mary Patrick who was just right for the part and Alice Noone as Sister Mary Robert (I think every nun was Sister Mary somebody). Alice gave a most beautiful and believable rendition of “The Life I Never Lead”.

It was nice to see Anne Burgan back on stage as the Mother Superior trying to keep some order in the convent, and she had a very funny scene in a confession box! But remained in character throughout.

The “baddies”, Curtis, Joey, Pablo and T.J. played by Sam Highcock, Jamie Toffrey, Craig Jones and John Hayden respectively gave so much more to the comedy. Especially in their song and dance routines. Adrian Williams as the Monsignor and David Crawford as a non-speaking Pope, completed the cast

Overall this was an excellent show which all around me thoroughly enjoyed…”amazing” was one comment I heard. A truly hilarious and uplifting show.

Well done to Anne, Richard, the cast and backstage crew. Thank you for a funtastic evening.

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