The Wizard of Oz

This really was another excellent performance by Northampton Musical Theatre Company. From the moment the curtain went up the show drew the audience into the magical land of Oz, with flying witches and monkeys and superb visual effects of the approaching storm courtesy of Phil Cave and Tim Halliday (Dissolve Ltd) - not to mention some very lively Munchkins.

Samantha Perryman gave an extremely confident portrayal of the taxing role of Dorothy - her singing and acting were faultless and she managed the ever-present Toto very well. She commanded the stage throughout. All the other principals gave good performances too. The threesome of Scarecrow (Gordon Ritchie), Tinman ( Luke White) and Lion (Ben Stanton) could not have been bettered - they came across as very warm-hearted characters and made the most of the comedy inherent in their roles. The characters of the two witches were nicely contrasted with Jay Snedker (Aunt Em/Good Witch) showing calm goodness while Ashleigh Maddison as Miss Gultch/Wicked Witch really seemed to relish her role and gave the audience some very realistic evil cackling. The rest of the company in lesser roles all contributed well.

As always the singing was spot on with good clear diction and the whole show was very well supported by the excellent orchestra under the baton of Graham Tear. The lighting and sound worked well to enhance the production along with a very professional backstage crew who ensured that the show ran very smoothly Overall the choreography was well tailored to the abilities of the company although, just slightly on the downside, there were a few cast members who did not seem totally sure of their movement.

But I would take nothing away from this show, the good sized group of children in the auditorium were mesmerised from start to finish - to my way of thinking that speaks volumes for the standard of excellence throughout the performance. Well done on such a fabulous show.

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