What is “Dead Ringer for Disco”?
DMTC were poised to put on Boogie Nights, the 70’s musical. All of the preparation had been completed and auditions happened and we found ourselves in the unenviable
but all too common position of not being able to cast the show. This is a common issue within amateur theatre and sees companies all over the country calling for
men to audition in their publicity even before the auditions have taken place. So the production team took swift action. We had enough people audition and want to be
involved to put on a show, however not to cast the specific roles required and so we had a meeting. We wanted to stay somewhat true to the energy and feel of the music of the
planned show without trying to completely recreate it and thus, “Dead Ringer for Disco was conceived and within 48 hours we had put together the Bare Bones of the show
before you today.
There are a total of 356 UK number one chart hits between 1970 and 198 and so how do you choose which songs to perform. That doesn’t even include the songs that only
made it to the top 10. Do you just make it a nostalgia trip for yourself or do you think about what your audience would like to hear. Do you open the discussion up and hope
that no-one asks for “Star Trekkin” or Jive Bunny.
Anyone who discovered music during either of these decades will have a list as long as their arm of songs that changed their life, songs that bring back memories. and songs
that were there for the most important days of their lives. Often we can hear the first Bar of a song and be transported to sitting on the sofa with a portable tape machine
trying to record the song and miss out the adverts (a torture that is definitely missing in the Spotify world)
There is a certain fear when compiling a show like that although you like the songs that mean something to you, they may not resonate with other people in the same way. It may even be the case that some of the audience won’t even know those songs and so in choosing the perfect line-up for this show we went right back to the drawing board. We also asked the committee what their favourite songs were. This set the feel for this show and this selection is an awesome and yet exciting responsibility.
And it’s a show that’s been exciting to work on with the energy coming from the cast. As they learn more and more dance routines and the commitment shown by everyone involved. It has been a pleasure to undergo this process with the cast of “Dead Ringer for Disco”.
Noda Review: Iain Douglas
DEAD RINGER FOR DISCO
May 2024
Director – Rob Walling
MD – Jo Walling
Choreography – Paula Smith and Hannah Cridge
This company originally planned to stage the full production of “Back to the 80s” but, sadly, were unable to cast it. This was as a result of a lack of male performers. Familiar Story ?
Not to be beaten, rather than not perform, they devised a fully staged compilation show featuring music form the 70s and 80s. This allowed them to work with the lack of male performers that had hampered casting the planned musical.
I know from my own experience that such compilation shows are often much harder work for the production team. With a book musical, the fabric of the show is already enshrined in the script. With a compilation show, the structure has to be constructed, the choice of musical items decided, and how the show is going to be staged also creates a multitude of decisions and options. Too often such shows can come across as second-rate options to quickly replace a planned musical. A compilation show has to work as a stand-alone piece in its own right.
Thankfully that was the case here. With the excellent team of Rob and Jo at the help, this production had the feel of a full musical. One didn’t feel short changed at all, and one certainly didn’t feel that there was something missing by not having a proper book musical. Although staged relatively simply this non-stop music-fest was actually hugely impressive. The 5-piece band was located on a rostra at the rear of the stage. The Md for this show is also a vocalist and she led some of the musical numbers with great energy and style. She is a great performer herself and more than held her own from her elevated position on the rostra. The band played wonderfully and backed each number with great energy and produced a great sound. This gave the production the correct feel for the era being depicted. It was great to actually see the band for a show by this group as usually they are located off stage.
The musical choice was excellent. Every number was right up my street, so I had a great time. Items from Elton John to The Three degrees to Michael Jackson to the weather Girls to Banarama and much more elicited a great response from the audience. A pitfall with this type of show is to have a compere introducing the items. To my mind that just hampers
the production and creates an amateurish air to the proceedings. It is much better to let the songs speak for themselves and create a smooth-running seamless show that transitions from number to number with good pace. That is exactly what happened here. The show had a funky feel to it, and was well choreographed and when the full company were on stage there truly was the urge to stand up and boogie, especially in the finale. The aim was to fill the show with “floor fillers for a night out” and this was achieved.
Good pace was the result of not having a compere and there was some good choreographic linking of musical items to ensure smooth running. Choreography was well thought through to suit the small stage (made even smaller due to the rostra at the rear), and also suited the varied abilities of the cast, although most could move and sing very well indeed. The company numbers were well drilled and soloists all acquitted themselves wonderfully. The lighting and sound reflected the spirit and mood of the show and were of good quality, at times giving the feel of a disco, which suited the musical items. technical aspects of shows at this venue have increased enormously over the last few years and are now of a professional standard. Compilation shows need to “work”, they need a “story” to come from good arrangement of the repertoire, they need a variety of costuming to aid visual interest, and they need good musical arrangements and backing. This production had all of that and one came away feeling that they had staged a full musical. I was as impressed, if not more impressed than for their recent full musical productions. This would certainly be in the running for a nomination for compilation shows.
