The Magic of Music and Laughter

I had a very warm welcome to the Beccles Public Hall on Saturday 3rd December 2022, to see The Magic of Music and Laughter by the Spotlight Theatre Group. It is always exciting to see a review show at Christmas time from this enthusiastic company of performers.

To mention any individual performance would be difficult and a very long review, so I am going to say that everyone from the director to all the participants was a credit to you all. I do say that the UV was outstanding with a great choice of songs, brilliant choreography and excellent comedy timing. Fattitude ‘dance class ‘ was good fun and the 4 Yorkshire men had worked hard with the Yorkshire accent. I particularly enjoyed the finale of ‘We wish you a merry Christmas’ with the use of sign language. My son, who had learnt this at school, joined in with a big smile. On the whole, the show had a lot of variety to keep the audience interested throughout the evening.

The staging was simple but effective, the props and furniture were used well and the costumes were apt for the performances, but maybe with the black staging, a little colour to some could have been added. I liked the occasional use of the light curtain at the back. On a personal note, it was lovely to see actual drink in a glass being used. Thank you.

When singing a solo, the use of the full stage for movement is ideal to keep the audience involved. I enjoyed the combination in memory of using dancers.

I would have liked to see a little bit more movement and dance in the opening number.

In the 4 candles sketch, all performers need to be involved in the scene even when holding some of the scenery up.

The diction was very clear in the scenes but sometimes the music was a little too loud for the singers.

I appreciate quick changes, but it is extremely upstaging and unfair to the supporting cast to enter the stage with a tie around your head.

The Magic of Music and Laughter this performance certainly was, and for me and my family was a great start and happy feeling at the beginning of this Christmas season. A thoroughly fun evening for us all. Thank you 

© NODA CIO. All rights reserved.