The School Of Rock

Never shy of taking on a huge challenge, Teesdale Operatic Society’s (TOS) latest mammoth of a show was the rip-roaring School Of Rock. Now living up to the hype of an iconic film is always a huge challenge however having already impressed with Little Shop of Horrors and Matilda (both originally hits as films) I was confident we were in safe hands under the Production team of Scott Edwards and Dawn Trevor.

Upon entering the auditorium of Barnard Castle School it was evident a huge amount of detail had gone into creating an effective and impressive set in a pretty compact area. The main band were on an elevated platform above the main action, ensuring the focus was not drawn away from the “acting” musicians and the stage had been turned into what could only be described as a mish pit with black screens effectively covered in Rock graffiti. All these screens would move around the stage by the cast members to recreate the many scene changes in this show and whilst the scene changes were a bit lengthy at times, the picture they created was perfect. I especially enjoyed the central opening to reveal the drum set on a rolled platform.  

Whilst there has been a big surge since the Theatre world re-opened many societies still struggle to fill cast roles, not TOS however who had a huge cast of over 50 members in this production. A great mixture of talented Juniors and adults filling the ensemble as well as many essential Cameo and minor roles.

It was the Adults who opened the main production with a lively Rock opening number with Sarah Gent , Emily Backes, Tariq Ahmad and Helen Stenton filling up the numbers of Dewey’s band eventually forcing him out, a great opening number and nice to see these members truly letting their hair down.

All the Adults in the production had been well cast and it was lovely to see a few new faces with Tariq impressing as not only a Rock Guitarist but also a stiff collared Science teacher and over- protective father. Martin Wallis and Andy Moorhouse made a wonderful couple and father figures to their very nervous and shy daughter and a few of the Senior Junior members took on adult roles with Flo, Maya and Freddie particularly impressive with their growing confidence and stage presence in character roles. Daniel Vickers, as always, lit up the stage with a great performance in his many roles.

The main story line revolves around our lead, Dewey, upon pressure from his old school friend and flat mate’s girlfriend to pay outstanding rent impersonate his friend to take on a teaching role at a very prim and proper Private School. Nate Robinson was outstanding as the slightly geeky and hen-pecked flat mate Ned and I loved seeing the contrast in his character throughout – from the fun and energetic Guitar Hero scene to the doe-eyed and nervous boyfriend to eventually letting it all go in the finale numbers! Isobel Harvey had her best performance to date – bossing around the male flat mates and acting as true dominant strong woman clearly determined to get her own way, her vocals were lovely and again a nice twist at the end where she sees a different side to Ned.

Of course, this isn’t the only love interest in the show and in the most surprising twist we see a lovely bond develop between Dewey and the School’s headmistress. Lizzy Heward was exceptional once again in this role, following on from her previous success in Little Shop of Horrors, we once again saw an acting masterclass and sensational vocals especially in Where Did The Rock Go. Playing the straight role is never an easy task amongst utter chaos but Lizzy perfected this and brought numerous sides to her character switching to the flirtatious and fun character with natural awkwardness and giving the bar scene and finale a real punch.

In the lead role and a newcomer to TOS productions was Adam Morgan and whilst a regular on stage in a music sense this was his 1st musical since his school days – there certainly was no evidence of rustiness. He smashed this role, giving every scene so much energy and commitment that I was exhausted watching him, his vocals and guitar playing were amazing and his connection with everyone in the production was a joy to watch. From his comedy timing interacting with the fellow teachers, to his dangerous flirting with the head but most importantly to his brilliant connection to the students (and band members) in his class. This role could overpower the most experienced actor but Adam was on point throughout and the image of Jack Black in this role was a distant memory – a huge well done.

Importantly what makes this show the success it is comes down to the children in the show and in TOS they have one of the best Junior memberships around, a huge ensemble of the class students had been expertly directed by Scott and the vocals especially in Horace Green Alma Mater were beautiful with some wonderful harmonies under the brilliant guidance of Richard Dawson – what a huge asset TOS has in this brilliant MD.

Every Junior was not just a chorus member but even when not a named role they had given themselves their own personality and as a group they clicked with such ease. Naturally the show requires some individuals to take on bigger roles and wow what talent.

For 2 very young members Sophia Mulvaney and Edith Smart were delightful as the band’s backing singers with lovely voices and personalities to match.  Libby Forsyth was perfectly cast as the band’s stylist, flouncing in and out of scenes with numerous flamboyant outfits. Standout vocals were supplied by the incredibly talented Elsie Porter, starting out as a quiet and shy new girl of the band, the encouragement from Dewey brings her out of her shell to lead the band - the vocals in Amazing Grace and If Only You Would Listen were sensational and matched a fine acting display.

The “Band” aside, the Junior performance of the show came from Freya Shepherd-Pegman as the Band’s Manager. This was a performance of great control and quality, from a spoilt stuck-up brat determined to undermine Dewey and follow the school’s rules to the strong leader of the Class. It was a display well above her years and the vocal quality and control to lead the Opening Number of Act Two in Time To Play was amazing, backed up by the brilliant ensemble and great choreography it really had the WOW factor.

Many groups would rely on the main orchestra to provide the musical excellence from the Class Band but not with this show. 4 incredibly talented Juniors either mastered their skills or indeed learnt how to play from scratch and this gave the production real authenticity.

Betty Porter took lead on the keyboard and had a real swagger about the stage and I loved the cheek and interaction with Dewey; Genevieve Twiss was on lead bass and had a great style and attitude during the numbers, an asset to any band; Joseph Stephenson was quite simply the coolest kid on stage, owning the centre of the stage on drums – not only ideal in the role but quite simply rocking it; Every Band needs a good lead on guitar and in Ben Lovatt TOS had a superstar, portraying his character brilliantly alongside Adam and then taking lead sections in his own number Stick it to the Man.

If this report is long and winded then I apologise however there were so many exceptional performances from this cast but the thing that brought it all together was the togetherness of the group. For the stage to be so full everyone had to keep in character throughout and Scott and Dawn worked their usual magic to make sure that the performances matched the musical quality.

The lighting and special effects, supplied by CDB Group were a perfect backdrop and gave this show the edgy feel it needed and the Finale certainly had the party atmosphere it deserved.

Thank you to the whole cast, production team and front of house members for a thoroughly entertaining evening and I can’t wait to see what the next show will conjure up.

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