Gonna Sing, Gotta Dance! - Alnwick Academy of Dance. Alnwick Playhouse, July 2nd 2010, 7:30pm.

For the third time in as many weeks, the young people of Alnwick have brought a large audience to the Playhouse with the promise of an entertaining show. And, as with The Music Man and the Instrumental Showcase, said audience has been spoilt rotten with the talent on offer.

Through a series of elaborate and highly entertaining song-and-dance sequences, the members of the Alnwick Academy of Dance put on a great show featuring a wide variety of music and several star turns from within the ensemble cast.

The Alnwick Academy was assisted by skilled pianist Sean McMenamon and a small number of students from Amble and Rothbury.

Being an episodic and ensemble-oriented show, it's somewhat unfair to single out any individuals as 'stars'. Nonetheless, across the many different numbers on offer, several figures deserve deeper recognition.

Tyler Angus, fresh from his leading role in The Music Man, goes from strength to strenth as a performer, turning in some fine moon-walking during the second half's gripping rendition of 'Smooth Criminal'.

James Brown remains an enjoyable presence, the highlights being his solo rendition of 'Why God Why' from Miss Saigon and his Rat Pack duet with Dan Hope.

Mr. Hope himself is really something to behold. Over the course of the night he shifted seamlessly between genres, taking in Van Morrison, Journey and Sammy Davis Jr.. His solo dance performance in the first half was breathtaking, with his marriage of skill and charisma being reminiscent of a young Patrick Swayze.

Sophie Hammond is a worthy match for him, having excelled in Jesus Christ Superstar three months ago. She is clearly a very talented singer, but she also demonstrated her skill as a dancer, whether in the Latin beats of 'Sway' or the bizarre 'Beautiful' with anime-inflected costumes.

Elsewhere there were two really great pieces of tap dancing, which incorporated some interesting experiments with percussion. 'Beatbox and Bronze' married the dancers' steps to drumsticks being beaten on the stage, while their rendition of Queen's 'Crazy Little Thing Called Love' saw the dancers completely mirror Roger Taylor's drumming.

The evening was brought to an appropriate climax with 'Jai Ho', the musical number at the end of Slumdog Millionaire. It was an idea means to conclude, summing up everything that had made the show so enjoyable: impeccable choreography, ravishing costumes, and a host of talented individuals who had put a spring in our collective steps.

Cast (alphabetically): Tyler Angus, Rachel Ashley, Amy Barrett, Lexy Bee, Livy Belk, Richard Biggars, Alexa Boldy, Caitlin Brown, James Brown, Natalie Brown, Emily Brunton, Emma Callighan, Ellie Cameron, Kerrie Charlton, Honor Colledge, Jessica Conroy, Sarah Crockett, Katherine Davenport, Andrew Davison, Emma Davison, Ellie Davison-Archer, Cora Drummond, Ryan Duncan, Sarah Dunn, Harry Ellaby, Hannah Elliott, Katie Elliott, Hayley Finney, Hannah Firth, Daisy Fitzpatrick, Annabel Freeman, Rebecca Gray, Anna Grundy, Sophie Hammond, Sarah Heywood, Jade Hinds, Dan Hope, Lily Horgan, Imogen Horrocks, Joy Hubbard, Courteney Latto, Rachael Latto, Shaun Latto, Emily Lester, Erin Mallaburn, Emily McKenzie, Jessica McKenzie, Caitlin Mitchell, Ellen Parker, Erryn Parry, Georgina Pearson, Claire Quick, Hilda Quick, Charlotte Robertson, Zoe Robson, Victoria Rose, Rebecca Russell, Ellen Ryan, Holl Ryan, Heather Sales, Ellen Shepherd, Ciarra Showler, Harrison Sleet, Erin Smith, Anna Spowart, Katherine Spowart, Emily Stenton, Lucy Stewart, Bronwen Stout, Elisa Stout-Carins, Billy Swan, Leanne Taylor, Eleanor Thatcher, Kristin Thompson, Stacet Turnbull, Sophie Walker, Becki Wilkie, Emma Wilkie, Emma Williams, Fern Williamson, Maya Woolfey.

Originally published as 'Gotta Sing (and Dance) Their Praises', Northumberland Gazette, July 8th 2010.

Godspell - Alnwick Playhouse Youth Theatre. Music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz, directed by Penny Brown, musical director Peter Brown. Alnwick Playhouse, July 7th & 8th, 7:30pm.

There's no fancy or clever way of saying this, so I'm just going to come straight out with it - Godspell is one of the greatest musicals I have ever seen.

Having been consistently entertained by the Alnwick Playhouse Youth Theatre, I entered the show with high expectations. They were exceeded by a show which was much, much more than mere entertainment.

Godspell is Stephen Schwartz’s musical take on St. Matthew’s Gospel, which premiered around the same time as Jesus Christ Superstar (performed by the Duchess’ High School back in March). But Godspell has a looser narrative, a more spaced-out tone to its dialogue, and to be perfectly honest, it’s a lot more fun.

The biggest asset which this production has is the unbridled energy of its cast. You won’t find any awkward choreography or nervous breaking of character in this play. The cast of fifteen gel like a well-oiled machine, with each member complimenting the others in terms of physicality and vibrancy.

Unlike a lot of musicals, the set is really stripped down, with very few props or costume changes to get in the way.

This produces an insane level of kinetic energy, with the performers running, leaping and bounding all over the place. You really get the sense that everyone on stage is enjoying themselves, a feeling which rubbed off on the audience.

Having stolen the show as Herod in Jesus Christ Superstar, James Matthewson takes on the more serious role of Jesus. And he remains completely irresistible, especially when he’s twirling a cane.

Matthew Winter, best known for playing Renfield in Dracula, really shakes off that mantle with a commanding performance boasting great stage presence.

Elsewhere Sophie Hammond sings brilliantly and Beth White’s dancing vignettes are very funny.

Despite the full-on fun style, Godspell does have substance. It begins with seven philosophers, from Socrates to Buckminster-Fuller, arguing their respective corners on the role of God. Most of the parables and the Sermon on the Mount are played out, and despite the literal tone of the piece it never feels cheesy or preachy.

Godspell is an unadulterated triumph, with a brilliant ensemble cast and a great physical energy which made for an overwhelming and enthralling experience.

As I was leaving the theatre, a couple who had travelled from Yorkshire to see the show remarked it was one of the best they had ever seen. And, without the slightest hesitation, I must agree.

Cast (alphabetically): Rhianna Bates, William Brown, Rachel Curran, Helena Davidson, Annie Davison, Hannah Firth, Sophie Hammond, James Matthewson, Chris Richardson, George Robson, Hannah Robson, Dawn Skelton, Stacey Turnbull, Beth White, Matthew Winter.

Noises Off, Alnwick Theatre Club. Written by Michael Frayn, directed by Jane Sanderson. Alnwick Playhouse, August 18-21.

Amateur dramatics groups are often criticised for not being ambitious, churning out the same old plays because the material is comfortable and easy to stage.

This could not be said of the Alnwick Theatre Club's latest production of Noises Off, one of their most ambitious and logistically complicated of late.

Michael Frayn's farce follows the cast and crew of the (fictional) sex comedy Nothing On as they undertake a UK tour. The play begins with a shambolic dress rehearsal and ends with a disastrous final leg at Stockton-on-Tees.

The logistical difficulty comes in the second act, in which the audience see all the 'noises off' which occur behind the set while the first act of Nothing On plays out.

Purely on a design level, the Theatre Club have excelled themselves. The set looks great, being robust and readily manoeuvrable while retaining the creaky aesthetic to reflect the tacky nature of the play-within-a-play.

A successful farce all comes down to pace, not just in delivering lines but in choreographing the large amounts of slapstick involved.

The first act takes a while to get going, but as soon as the set has been turned around Jane Sanderson's direction really comes alive. The actors move in a finely-tuned frenzy, and there are at least four very funny jokes happening on stage at any given time.

As well as creating something hilarious, the cast manage to convey the various subtexts of Frayn's work.

Just as Tom Stoppard's The Real Inspector Hound parodies crime thrillers as a means of savaging theatre critics, so Noises Off uses a tacky farce to poke fun at the process of touring and satirise the diva-esque mentality of the performers.

Robin Lewsey gives a great performance as long-suffering director Lloyd Dallas. Resisting the temptation to constantly fly off the handle, he lets the pressure built beautifully, delivering his lines with appropriate weariness and sarcasm.

Hannah Firth proves herself to be an adept physical comedian in the role of Brooke, and Tony Neale is hilarious as Selsdon, playing every forgotten line for maximum enjoyment.

Noises Off is a thoroughly entertaining show with a great cast who are firing on all cylinders. The production values are very good, the direction is meticulous and the performances are all first-rate. Above all it passes the acid test of a good farce, being perfectly paced and relentlessly funny.

Cast (alphabetically): Peter Biggers, Matt Bush, Jade Curran, Hannah Firth, Lisa Gladstone, Robin Lewsey, Mark Miller, Margaret Neale, Tony Neale, Andrew Nicholl.

Originally published as 'Ambition Pays Off for Theatre Club', The Northumberland Gazette, August 26th 2010, p. 13.

When I began this section of our blog, I promised you some of my theatre reviews and thoughts on the medium. It's now late-August and I have so far failed miserably to deliver on that promise.

Never fear, though, for I intend to put that to rights. My latest review for the Northumberland Gazette - for which I write on an ad hoc (i.e. mostly unpaid) basis - will be coming out on Thursday, and so I will reprint my thoughts on Noises Off on this blog. From then on you'll get one of my old reviews every week, probably on a Friday when I don't have much to do.

There will also be a post on the Mumbys, a (slightly) tongue-in-cheek awards ceremony I created in January to informally honour the individuals who had made my year special from a dramatic point of view (click here to see the results from the 2010 Mumbys). Rather than begin to build up the nominees in each category, I'll take each production I've seen in turn and speculate as to what they might get nominated for (nothing will be formally assessed until the Alnwick Playhouse closes at the end of December).

So, in addition to my film reviews, radio show and recording duties, y2ou can now catch my thoughts on the theatre.

Oh, and there'll also be a post along almost immediately about the latest production I'm in with Warkworth Drama Group. Well, I had to get it in somewhere.

Daniel x