Sunshine On Leith

I am sure you will forgive me if I do not recount the story of Sunshine on Leith. I am sure it is familiar to all people, with even the slightest connection with musical theatre!

As expected of CAMS, the cast was exceptionally strong. The two best friends Davy and Ally (Andrew Doig and Tony Livingston) together with Yvonne (Brodi Orkney) and Liz (Helen Knowles-Venters) were an absolute pleasure to watch, giving an evening of singing and acting of the highest order. In the course of the show, they all managed to offer consistently high quality performances covering the whole gamut of emotions ranging from bitterness via love, despair, frustration and anger, to humour.

Mum & Dad, Rab & Jean (Alan MacLeod & Laura Spence),  were no less accomplished in their emotional acting, particularly when family life was torn apart on the realisation that Rab had fathered a child, Eilidh (Laurie Seath), following a one-night-stand some years previous. Rab’s “Oh Jean” and Jean’s “Sunshine on Leith” both came over with heartfelt emotion.

Excellent cameo performances were had from many cast members and the fact that you are not mentioned here must not take away from the quality of all of your performances and the important part they played in the story.

Director Scott Melvin handled the show well, given that, with thirty plus scenes, the performance had the tendency, largely, not to flow. On several occasions, two scenes could happily co-exist on stage, involving a simple crossfade to move from one to the other. However, too often the flow of the action would be halted to effect a scene change. Even given the effective use of a video wall, props and furniture required moving and removing, thus causing a hiatus in the action.  Whilst mentioning matters technical, one of my pet hates is when actors are not seen when they should be, and unfortunately this occurred on a number of occasions. For example, three pairs of singers placed across the stage with only two of the pairs lit. It would appear to be a national fad to incorporate intelligent lights in a show for no good reason – the result being lack of time for plotting and live moves randomly occurring. Technical rant over!

Music and singing was in the capable hands of John Montgomery, who, although new to the Society, has brought his extensive experience to bear, working with this talented cast. So too, Iain Hughes, although no stranger to the musical scene in Fife and beyond, has brought a wealth of choreographic energy in to the company.

Finally a word of thanks to CAMS for inviting us along, and for the hospitality and friendliness shown to us throughout! Congratulations on a sell-out week!

© NODA CIO. All rights reserved.