Six Teen Edition

On one hand I’m almost embarrassed to admit that this was my first time seeing Six but on the other I’m now thinking if my first viewing of a show is as good as DAPA’s Teen Edition of the Cult show then I’m going to be giving the West End a miss and attending a lot more NODA amateur shows.

I know how much hype there is around this musical and from the energy, up tempo songs and very clever script I can now see why, and Darlington Academy of Performing Arts certainly did the show proud.

Every aspect of the production was meticulously planned from an eccentric and vibrant lighting display, sensational costumes that combined colour, Tudor elegance and Rock in a stunning fashion and really clever staging work. Joanne and Paul Mason had clearly spent a lot of time on the music, visual effects and close direction with not just 1 team of Six Queens, but Two! Their hard work and dedication to the academy clearly paid off as a packed house was thoroughly entertained and blown away by the talent on display.

Now the great thing about the Teen edition of this show is it allows for an ensemble of Ladies in Waiting and on the Saturday, I attended Team Royaling Stones were absolutely fabulous. Their energy was sensational, the voices matched the principals wonderfully adding a lovely dimension to the hit songs and from the beaming smiles from every single one of them it was clear just how much fun they were all having on stage. The detail wasn’t lost on this group either with clever black and gold costumes all individual yet harmonious in style. I loved the extra detail of the regal purple flash in every member’s hair. Great attention to detail.

The extra members on stage really brought certain numbers to life with house of Holbein being a standout moment as we were transported to a crazy 90’s rave with Neon fully on display especially with the brilliant Green glasses worn by everyone.  

The show opened in emphatic style with the hit number Ex-wives giving us a brilliant introduction to all 6 principals and from the offset it was clear how well these 6 girls were going to work and click together. The chemistry was brilliant, all bouncing off each other and creating their characters instantly. For a short show you need to know the story quickly and this well-choreographed number and the introduction quickly set the scene. Each Queen would tell their own horrific story to be voted the Queen with the most tragic tale. All told in their own splendid and over the top manner.

Fern Tyerman was 1st up as Aragon and had an instant connection with the audience, her interaction almost as the narrator of the show was instant and she had such a wonderful presence about her. She truly captured the emotion of her main number No Way showing off a lovely voice and really conveyed the abandoned wife of Henry perfectly.

Camryn Mason as Anne Boleyn was next up really giving us the comic performance of the night. Her big number Don’t Lose Your Head was a powerful hit giving us the true arrogance of her character whilst playing on the fact she was beheaded as the dominant factor for being the winner throughout the show. Her permanent interjections of this reference were fabulous, and the comic timing brilliantly matched the cheeky grins and naughty glances. 

Niamh Sudgwick as Anne of Cleves delivered the power performance of the night. Starting off in the brilliant club of House of Holbein and moving into Get Down she demonstrated an amazing attitude with fabulous sass. Niamh absolutely owned the stage with 2 sensationally choreographed numbers owned by her, the Queens and the ensemble. Her facial expressions were genius, really building up her character. 

Brining the flirting and cheekiness to the group was Gabrielle Labeikyte as Katherine Howard. Fighting the reputation as the one nobody remembers she brought so much style and wit to the role. Her hair flicks, naughty persona and wonderful acting throughout her number All You Wanna Do combined with a lovely soulful voice made sure we wouldn’t forget her in a hurry. A performance definitely worthy of the diva reputation Katherine herself had.

I think the hardest song of the show belonged to Alice Thompson as Catherine Parr and she delivered a beautiful and very emotional performance of the Queen. Despite the other’s stories being about their marriage to Henry. Parr’s was more about her loss of a love to another, and Alice really portrayed this beautifully not only nailing a really tricky song but pulling on all our heart strings at the same time.

Now it is pretty impossible to single anyone out as the show would not have worked without the excellent connection between all the girls. Everyone of them bringing great vocals, wonderful characterisation and passion to the show but I do have to give a huge Wow! to Violet Renwick for an absolutely sensational performance as Jane Seymour. Her attitude throughout the whole show was amazing, her timing in all the dances perfection and she gave the best version of Heart of Stone I have ever heard.

Over the years I had grown to dislike this song. It has been done, and not always well, by so many people yet Violet not only handled the vocals with such style and control, but she also captured the emotion within the song. Her range and tone matched only by her control and knowing when to push and hold back, the song amazingly got even better when joined by the girls and ensemble. A truly remarkable performance from a young actress who I am sure is destined for huge things.

Despite some fantastic solo performances what made the show was the way the girls united, they handled Joanne’s brilliant choreography in pure style working in absolute sync and harmony and the show had the finale it truly deserved with a blockbuster Six and Megasix with the whole audience fully embraced in the show. Had my schedule allowed it I would have come back to watch the second cast as I am sure with looking at the cast list, they would have matched the high quality I had witnessed. A huge congratulations to everyone involved - in my eyes your best show to date and I can’t wait to see what the rest of the year brings.

Councillors visit for Team Tudor Von Trapps- it was a great privilege to be able to join Darlington Academy of Performing Arts to see their production of “Six, Teen Edition” and whilst this is not the first time that I have seen this production I was absolutely blown away with the energy and creative visual effects that was achieved in this production. Well done firstly to Paul and Joanne Mason for their creative direction and choreography. This is not an easy show to direct, and to produce a show of this standard you must appreciate the amount of work that Paul and Joanne have dedicated themselves to and have ensured that the overall production came to life and tell this amazing story of six of the most famous wives of one of the most fascinating Kings of England. Firstly, I must comment on the sound and lighting which was amazing well-done Paul, this must have been a challenge, but the visual effect was outstanding and certainly added to the overall production. Choreography was well executed with each routine fitting to the individual character enhancing their story and showcasing their talent. I loved the musical number “Haus of Holbein” which showcased the talent of the whole cast and a standout moment for myself and the audience as the cast presented themselves in this number in a set resembling a neon rave, great lighting and I loved the brilliant green glasses worn by everyone.  

The costumes were excellent brining colour to the stage and the little details which some people may not have noticed certainly added to the visual effect I loved the coordinated laces in the shoes.

Whilst this show relies heavily on the 6 principles there is a great opportunity to involve an  ensemble of Ladies in Waiting and on the production I attended on Sunday, it was the turn of the  Team Tudor Von Trapps, and what a ensemble of talent young performers their energy and attention to detail was amazing, vocally their delivered their musical numbers confidently and they looked amazing in the costumes, well done everyone there is certainly some talent coming through for future productions.

From the onset when the audience was introduced to the musical number “Ex-Wives”, and we were introduced to the line-up of the six principal performers, it was obvious that we were in for a treat. The chemistry between these performers were amazing each with their individual character and style as they musically told their story of their lives cemented in history.

Ella Wallace was the first Queen to portray her story, as Katherine of Aragon the first wife of Henry she delivered her musical number “No Way” passionately. This young performer commanded the stage in every way, lovely vocals and great stage presence.

Fraya Rutter delivered an outstanding performance of the first Queen to lose her head, Anne Boleyn. Fraya’s musical number “Don’t Lose Your Head” was delivered with passion and a great annoyance to herself and the other Queen’s which she continued to refer to throughout the production. A great performance by this young performer and confidently delivered.

Katie Cowlings delivered a passionate rendition of the musical number “Heart of Stone” and what a performance as she told the story of Jane Seymour the third wife of Henry who died after delivering the only Son and only male heir the throne, this is a beautiful number and Katie delivered it with great emotion and passion, a fantastic and outstanding performance, this performer is certainly someone to watch out for in the future.

Amber Wraith as Anne of Cleves certainly demonstrated her ability to dance and move, Amber had great vocal ability which enabled her to deliver her powerful musical number “Get Down” with ease and conviction. I loved how she was able to demonstrate her confident character brilliantly as she boasted to the other Queens her independence following her divorce from Henry a great performance from this principal performer.

Delivering the sass to the production was Jake Shaw as Katherine Howard the fifth wife of Henry and what a performance Jake delivered, he commanded the stage throughout the production showcasing the personality of this young Queen as well as interacting well with the other principal wives. The delivery of his musical number “All You Wanna Do” was delivered strongly and confidently due to Jake’s vocal range and by could he dance again delivering the character of the life of Katherine Howard.

Completing the lineup of wives was the only survivor, Catherine Parr played beautifully by Phoebe Carr, as the tempo in this musical changed so did the delivery of this performance as Phoebe sang her musical number “I Don’t Need Your Love” this song was all about the love that Catherine lost by marrying Henry. Beautifully delivered with bags of emotion, a confident performance by a excellent performer well done Phoebe.

What a performance delivered by six talented principals portraying the lives of the most famous Queens in history, there solo performances were exceptional but their teamwork and that of the Ladies in Waiting shone through each one performer supporting each other to ensure that the grand finale of Six and The megaSix had the audience wanting more from this 80 minute musical phenomenon.

Well done to everyone involved on this excellent production, you certainly deserved your standing ovation and I can wait to see you all in your next production of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory in July.

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