Noda rep standing in: Mike Purnell
Thanks for the lovely warm welcome I received upon my arrival at The Shaftesbury Theatre in Dawlish, especially after an hour and three quarters journey from Bristol.
As this is not my usual district, it was so kind of Paul Spear to take the time to sit and have a chat filling me in on the history of The Dawlish Musical Theatre Club. I was thrilled to be standing in for Iain Douglas tonight, it’s always so refreshing to visit a club for the very first time. I must say the journey was so very worth it.
From the moment I entered the auditorium to take my lovely seat, I could appreciate the icy blue auditorium light and the moveable gobos on the front of house tabs. This certainly put everyone in the mood for what was to come. Great to see a virtually full house which included a lot of very small children, I remember thinking to myself ‘oooh this could be a tough crowd’, but as I was, they were enthralled and definitely entertained throughout.
For most of the time you could hear a pin drop in the audience, so congratulations to the performers. A good job done. The opening was certainly a feast for the eyes. Plenty of colourful costumes and the choreography was always interesting creating good shaping throughout. The harmonies were coming through a plenty. This really must have taken a lot of work but a nice balance was created. Just a shame Little Anna’s mic kept cutting in and out at times but hey, these things happen and are sometimes out of our control. Lighting effects were good throughout and spot on timing especially in the magic scenes.
I loved the use of your well put together colourful flats. It made scene changes very simple and kept the show rolling along at a lovely sharp pace. I realise from Paul that only the children were allowed on stage and I think this should always be the case from now on always use ‘your cast' to do scene changes they are in costume and part of the action. This worked beautifully throughout the show. Costumes, wigs and make up were extremely good.
Make up was just right in this small theatre. Not over done at all. Just right. A little note for everyone on stage - remember to maintain your characters from the moment you enter the stage to the time you leave and are in the wings. Don’t drop character before that. Something I’m sure your director kept instilling into you.
YOUNG ANNA / YOUNG ELSA
You were both a joy to watch and listen to. I’m sure you both took the opportunity to watch your older selves during rehearsals. Just remember in this industry you never stop learning. Take in everything you can like a sponge. You are our future in the Theatre and I must say I enjoyed both performances very much. Well done.
MIDDLE ANNA / MIDDLE ELSA
Short and sweet, but both performances managed to make your mark upon the show. Also congratulations on seamlessly going from ensemble, to part, and back to ensemble. Certainly a busy show for you both.
ANNA
What a great impact you made on your arrival. A really well thought through performance. You certainly embodied Anna to a T. Lovely singing voice which was always full of character and I admired how already at your young age you are learning how to sing between your chest and head voice without showing a break. Really enjoyable.
ELSA
Again a stunning performance. What a super strong voice you have. You were Elsa through and through. It felt like you took this opportunity with both hands and played her to your very best ability. You did perfectly. I admired greatly how you opened act 2 with the one song everyone was waiting for, and boy did you deliver not only in vocal but also knowing you had that costume change coming up right in the middle of the song. This would have thrown a lot of singers but it all happened as if by magic. Spot on. Congratulations.
PRINCE HANS
Well you’ve certainly got it all. Perfect casting for a Prince. Tall, good looking, plenty of stage presence and you really surprised me with that wonderful baritone singing voice. A part with two characters (which I’d forgotten) you changed from the Prince who was there because he loved Anna to the wicked prince who was only after his own ends. Greatly convincing. Very well played.
KRISTOFF
I loved your character. Lovely use of voice and facial expression. Good timing for comedy. A very well thought through performance. Great stage presence.
OLAF
I think you were the audiences favourite from the moment you entered the stage. What a great energy. You knew just how to play this part. Not easy being a puppeteer and being the character yourself. But you did this perfectly. Good use of expressions and incredible stage presence. I hope I get to see more of your performances as you progress. I predict a good future ahead. Congratulations.
QUEEN ADUNA/ THE KING/ WESELTON
I loved reading in the Queens bio that you have gained so much theatre knowledge from doing this show. As I said earlier you never stop learning, even at my age!!! You have tremendous stage presence so a fantastic base to start. Just slow down those lines a little to give us as an audience time to take them in. Same goes for King/ Westleton, wonderful charisma on stage. Just make the diologue as though you were having a real conversation. You have a great theatre career ahead. Keep up the good work both of you. Well done.
SVEN
Great choice to go with two characters playing this part. They both completely worked in sync together. One of those faces you just wanted to cuddle. Well done boys. Good work.
MUSICAL DIRECTOR - Nadrah Al Shawi
I take my hat off to you. That must have been quite a task? One you pulled off extremely well. You created a Great Wall of sound. When the company were backing the soloists they did just that. No over powering. It felt like very good team work. A nice balance between vocals and track. Congratulations.
DIRECTOR - Hannah May Cridge
I can imagine this was a joy to do. All the way through this performance I kept saying over and over to myself what great team work I am witnessing, but of course someone has to lead this and I think you did an admirable job. The show flowed brilliantly almost a little too quick at times with dialogue being swallowed. I think nerves had a lot to do with that and we all know as experience is garnered, we all learn to make the most of every word we have. Also as I mentioned the drilling of staying in character the whole time they are on stage. No dropping of shoulders as they turn to go off stage. Something that was drummed into me from an early age and something you don’t forget. I loved the use of the flats they were just perfect and Elsa’s transformation scene was just brilliant. I wondered if a little two second blackout and a couple of flashing lights could have worked when she dropped the cape and was in the beautiful dress? Maybe you tried it and it didn’t work. Just a thought! All in all an extremely tight production that considering you choreographed as well was an absolute triumph. I look forward to hopefully seeing more of your work in the future Thanks again for the very hospitable welcome and I really hope I get chance to see more of your productions.
Kind regards Mike Purnell
