The Wizard of Oz

Very much a family show, and directed, both musically & artistically, as such.   A first class cast took this show to their hearts, and certainly lifted mine in terms of my previous feelings for The Wizard of Oz! The enthusiasm showed by the chorus in both their singing and dancing, paid tribute to Musical Director Suzanne Stewart and Choreographer Jacqui Wilson. The show was treated neither as purely a children’s show or purely an adult show – in fact the junior and adult members of the cast merged with apparent ease.

Niamh Logie as Dorothy Gale belied her biog which states that “this is the first musical Niamh has appeared in” -  really! I am sure after tonight it won’t be the last! The Tinman (Craig Tait), Scarecrow (Robert Forbes) and the Cowardly Lion (Andrew Gardiner) formed a formidable team, each of which extracted every ounce of comedy and pathos from their character. The Witches, Erin Gilliland-Paterson as Glinda the Good and Ali Fleming as The Wicked Witch, both excelled in their characterisations. Both ladies have to be loved or hated (as appropriate) by the audience – adults and children alike, and tonight was no exception to this rule! The title role in the show is, in effect, not a huge part, but, nevertheless is so important to the storyline. In this show, Kevin Keir’s portrayal of the all-powerful Wizard was a pleasure to watch.

Direction was again in the experienced and capable hands of Margaret Paul. Margaret seems to have the knack of extracting all of the acting ability contained in her cast, using it to its best and presenting it to her audience in a LADAMA show!

Technically, sets were colourful and worked well. Video projections for the storm sequences were well produced. Lighting, this year by Kieren Hotchkiss, deserves particular praise. Too often we see beams from intelligent lights flying around a stage/auditorium with little thought given. Tonight, thought had been given to the use of such equipment, culminating in lighting that added to the show rather than distracted.

For me, the highlight of the show this year was undoubtedly the extremely high standard of Suzanne Stewart’s orchestra. From the very first note we felt we were set for an exhilarating evening of  entertainment – and we weren’t disappointed!

Well done LADAMA – roll on next year! 

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