Wish You Were Here

I must congratulate everyone involved in this production from the original concept through to the finished product. It was entertaining from the first note of music to the last. The audience was treated to an excellent selection of music encompassing many decades including some classic numbers from the past to lesser well-known numbers from more recent times. This allowed the talented cast to demonstrate an amazing range of skills in chorus singing, small ensemble singing, duets and solos plus some very competent dance routines. In addition to all this we were introduced to the recently formed youth section and they showed us that the future of Tamworth MTC is very secure. The Youth Coordinators, Ami Radcliffe and Demi Williams can justifiably be proud of what they have achieved with this talented group of young people.

There are too many people to mention individually but every item in the programme was presented and delivered to a high standard. All the dance routines were slick and performed with confidence, particularly, Tap Your Troubles Away and Cell Block Tango. The audience obviously appreciated the humour in Gotta Get A Gimmick as most of them were probably too young to remember the original 1950s musical, loosely based on the life of the burlesque performer, Gypsy Rose Lee. I must also give credit to the four men who performed Brush Up Your Shakespeare. This is a very wordy song that often challenges the two characters who perform it in the show. This routine with the four men was first class and I could hear every word. Something that many societies wouldn’t risk attempting was an ensemble ‘acapella’ song. The number, Gold, led by Musical Director, Tim Robinson was highly effective. The enthusiasm and talent in the youth section numbers was a delight.

I am not a huge fan of closing the main tabs to carry out scene changes but accept that sometimes it can’t be avoided. The lighting and sound plots added to the evening’s entertainment as did the support of an extremely competent instrumental ensemble. The balance between the musicians and cast was exactly right.

Thank you for a very pleasant evening’s entertainment. Well done to everyone!

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