Joe Sanderson Archives - North West End UK

30Oct

By Damian RiverolNo Comments

North West

The Producers – Zodiac Theatre Group

Opening Night, It’s Opening Night. Zodiac Theatre Group have brought the hilarious Mel Brooks musical, The Producers, to the Hammond in Chester this week. A new venue for the company but the space was used extremely well. Directed by Neil Silcock, there were nods from the 2005 film mixed with some fresh and hilarious moments, with lots of physical comedy made possible by the brilliant cast who threw themselves, sometimes literally, into the roles to bring this hilarious musical to life. Gareth Earl leads the company as doomed theatre producer Max Bialystock and lead he does. Earl delivers a fantastic Bialystock, with absolute top notch acting, plenty of physical comedy and some incredible vocals, especially during Betrayed where he recaps most of the story at top speed, including an ...

Everybody’s Talking About Jamie – The Gladstone Theatre

Taking on a musical like Everybody’s Talking About Jamie, the true story of a young man who dreams of being a drag queen and wearing a dress to prom, can be an ambitious project requiring a strong, triple-threat cast, clever staging and the energy to send the show strutting into the audience’s hearts in glittery heels. Thankfully D&S Productions have achieved this in spades. Under the assured direction of Donna Dale, the company have delivered a sassy and sparkly show that brings all the right notes of humour and humanity to a hugely enjoyable performance. Donna has honed her ensemble into a very high standard, with smart blocking and some lovely directorial touches. Similarly Musical Director Grace Harman leads her band with a solid showcase of Dan Gillespie Sells’ fizzy musical...

Beautiful The Carole King Musical – Grange Theatre

This evening, I was lucky enough to visit The Grange Theatre in Hartford where The Zodiac are performing Beautiful – The Carole King Musical, the Northwest amateur premier, directed very well by Valarie Ball. After a wonderful greeting by the company and made to feel very welcome (thank you to Jude and Jessica), we take our seats ready for the show. The stage is set with a grand piano in the centre, with a spotlight on it. As the curtain goes up, we see the huge structure that is used to break the stage up, giving the piece levels and the 10-piece on stage band a home throughout the show. Beautiful follows the story of Carole Joan Klein, who takes on the stage name of Carole King at 16 when she pitches her first song ‘It might as rain well until September’, to meeting her future husband...