It is my intention to invite some of the past reviewers from the Gazette to continue to write reviews of shows they may see and to post them on this site. Hopefully the Gazette would help promote the review site and the general public would once again be able to read about show in their area.
To start us off I'm going to print some reviews from recents months, some of which did not make it into the paper and have not yet been seen.
The Pajama Game
Pastiche Musical Theatre
The Compass Theatre
28th -31st March 2007
The Pajama Game, most famous for the 1956 Hollywood film version starring Doris Day and John Raitt is the story of the ‘Sleep Tite’ pajama factory’s battle to get a seven and a half cent raise for its workers. The new Superintendent, Sid Sorokin, played by Pastiche veteran, Steve Ellis is determined to succeed in his new job and the last thing he needs is a labour dispute, especially when a workers laziness leads him to clash with ‘Babe Williams’, head of the grievance committee played superbly by Jenny Rigby. Sid and Babe fall in love but problems arise when the matter of the seven and a half cents come to the fore.
Director, Jean Hobson kept the staging simple, the costumes colourful and the characters well defined. All the musical numbers were delivered with confidence and enthusiasm and it’s great to see a local theatre company with such an abundance of young talent. ‘Steam Heat’ featured three teenage lads, Matthew Ridley, David Rees and Tudor Williams whose dancing was worthy of the professional stage, with more than a little help from Charlotte Ingham and Roma Ridley who also choreographed the show. Musical Director, Jean George has every right to be pleased with excellent renditions of some tricky numbers, in particular ‘Racing with the Clock’.
Above all, what sets Pastiche apart is that the profits from every show, now in its tenth year, go to charity. Pastiche hope to give around £2500 from the Pajama Game to National Children’s Homes with help from Barclays Bank and Camelot and in the 10 years since Pastiche was formed over £35,000 has been raised for worthy causes. Well done to all concerned.
Simon Tidball
Oklahoma!
Pastiche Musical Theatre
Compass Theatre
18th-21st March 2009
PASTICHE Musical Theatre Company, under the direction of Jean Hobson, not only raises money for many charities (an amazing £42,115 to date), but has also been responsible for a wealth of wonderful shows.
And Oklahoma! was certainly no exception. From the start, the five piece band (directed by Jean George) played an excellent overture, with the interesting inclusion of a flute player.
Against the backdrop of music, Aunt Eller (played by Jenny Rigby), gently carried on with her everyday farming tasks. She managed a convincing accent and controlled the difficult bidding at the Box Social, shining through as a lady keeping a farming community in peace and harmony.
Meanwhile Curly (Steve Ellis) looked the part with his cheeky expressions, and Laurey, played by Louise Crouch, had a beautiful singing voice.
It was good to see principal parts taken by young men. Will Parker (Tudor Williams) and Ali Hakim (Ben Banks) were very amusing characters while Simon Tidball, as Jud acted the villain extremely well.
Special mention must be made of Claire Ridley, who stepped into the part of Ado Annie at short notice. her acting, singing and dancing were excellent.
Congratulations must also go to Roma Ridley for the choreography. All the dance numbers were bouncy, but controlled and the costumes, as always with Pastiche, were so authentic, fresh and colourful.
Jean Hobson would like to thank everyone who went along and made the evening such a success. The proceeds will go to Moorcroft School in Hayes, which caters for children with severe learning difficulties.
Siba Matti
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