White Christmas

So first of all I feel it is important to be honest and upfront with you and say that unfortunately I didn’t enjoy the story of White Christmas.  Please note this doesn’t mean I didn’t enjoy your show, it’s just that I felt that the story was a little dated and not particularly strong.  I only mention this, because it obviously would have had an impact of my enjoyment of your show.

However, regardless of whether I enjoyed the story or not.  I most certainly enjoyed your choreography, which was not only incredible but was also, easily, some of the best choreography that I have seen in an amateur production.  Your dance scenes were an absolute joy to watch, especially when they involved the whole cast and these routines were buzzing with energy.  Throughout the whole production it was obvious that everyone on stage was having a great time, the best example of this just had to be Nick Mountjoy, in a few cameo scenes, who just had the biggest and most infectious smile on his face throughout the whole production, well when he wasn’t asleep or drunk.  There was also a real feeling of teamwork which is always a great thing to see in any show.

All the cast members worked hard and were good in their respective roles, but the performance of Shaun Driver was particularly impressive and he was exceptionally good as Phil Davis, it just seemed that he was born to star in a 1950s lavish musical.  Every scene he was in was just automatically lifted by his wonderful energy and stage presence and whenever the equally talented Jennifer Holland-Brewer, as Judy Hayes, was with him, then you easily had some of the stand out moments in the show.  Equally impressive were Nick Harris and Marie Brolly, in the roles of Bob Wallace and Betty Haynes whose characters worked well together as their voices, their harmonies were both lovely.  Another cast member who really stood out was Liz Stallard, who effortlessly evoked memories of Lucille Ball in her role as Martha Watson.  Of course in any show there is always one scene stealer, that special person who can make a seemingly insignificant role into a piece-de-resistance and that accolade must easily be awarded to Ernie Thomas, who was just so funny as Ezekiel Foster and easily had the whole audience behind him from his first entrance.  I am definitely going to grow an Ezekiel moustache soon!  As good as it is to see so many fine adult actors in one show, it is always a lovely privilege to see young talent being given a chance to bloom and what a young talent!  Paris May Grassi did a sterling job as Susan but it was during her performance of Let me Sing and I’m Happy, that she really stepped up to a different level and showed that the future of YAOS is in very safe hands.  Unfortunately, due to the alternating nature of Susan’s role, we didn’t get the chance to see Charlotte Cain perform but, based on the quality onstage, I’m sure that her performance would have been just as good.

With so many different locations it can be hard for the stage crew to keep things moving without having to stop for lengthy scene changes.  Therefore the use of simple sets and completing scene changes around the action, kept the pace up and the story moving.  However, a couple of the sets would have benefitted from a little bit of TLC, but in general the simplicity of them worked well.  As mentioned it was a good idea to have the stage crew move things in front of the audience but as a suggestion it is good practice to have the stage crew dressed in black.  I mention this because during the backstage at the Ed Sullivan Show scene, I was momentarily distracted by several flashes of blue plaid, in the spotlight, behind Betty as she was finishing her scene.

The costumes were good, if not a little bright and easily evoked the period well.  The scenes where the whole cast were dressed the same, most notably Blue Skies and The Finale, worked exceptionally well and had a real impact, so well done to the wardrobe team.  However, although the wigs definitely fitted the 50s style, some were not flattering to the actresses that were wearing them and completely changed their appearance, unfairly ageing them.

Although there were a few niggles with wigs; scenery and stage crew, the sound was completely impressive and I would like to take this opportunity to send a massive congratulations to David Riley and Northern Lights Productions.  This is the first production that I have seen this year where the sound quality was just superb, every word was completely clear and there was no horrible feedback.  Whilst talking about sound congratulations should be given to the whole cast for their fantastic American accents, which stayed clear and audible throughout.  Even bigger praise to those cast members who also managed to maintain their strong accent whilst singing; this of course is not an easy task.  The professional quality was also noticeable in the lighting and with the orchestra who were just stunning.

All in all an enjoyable evening and although I did not like the story, I’m only human we can’t like everything, I did however appreciate the good quality performance.  What excites me the most is if I can walk away from a story I did not enjoy having had an enjoyable evening, then I can’t wait to see what you guys do in March with Jesus Christ Superstar, a show that I love.

Well done YAOS and thank you for a lovely, snowy performance.

As you know I was accompanied by Jack Price, South West Noda Youth Adviser.  Here are his comments.

Congratulations on a splendid show, it looked like everyone on stage was having a ball. I was thoroughly impressed by the standard of professionalism of your theatre and really liked the White Christmas Backdrop, which added a nice touch when the audience were taking their seats.  I am very jealous at the amount of wing space you must have to be able to have all the set on wheels.  I thought that was rather impressive. 

I was also very impressed by Paris May, who played Susan, for me she stole the show.  There wasn't a moment that she wasn't in character or giving it her all and what a voice!  I have seen many youth performances and can safely say she has an incredible talent.  YAOS's future is bright!

However, I have to agree with Leigh about the wigs as I really couldn't tell if there was anyone else under 18 in the production because the wigs aged everyone terribly.  I would suggest that only the principals really need them for future productions.

Good luck with your next production and I look forward to visiting YAOS again. 

Jack Price

Noda Youth Adviser 

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