College Productions

Merrily We Roll Along (RCSSD)

An absolutely incredible production of one of Sondheim’s greatest masterpieces, this could easily have graced any of the capital’s fringe theatres.

I was already aware of several numbers through the recent Old Friends revue but it was so special to experience them in their natural environment, if you like. The three central characters were portrayed beautifully by Christian Wood (Frank), Daisy-May Hinde (Mary) and Calum Isaacs (Charley). The whole company was electric but Hinde was on another level.

Lynne Thomas’s choreography only enhanced an already wonderful piece. The only negative I can think of with this show is that Not a Day Goes By comes out of nowhere and doesn’t feel earned by Beth at that moment of the show. The reprise hit hard though.

I don’t really agree with star ratings for amateur or student productions but if I were to give stars, it would be one of the easiest five star reviews I’ve ever written. I wish it was running longer so I could go again.

Nice to bump into a fellow TheatreBoard user at the end as well!

I think for musicals, Mountview, ArtsEd and Royal Academy of Music are the best. I've seen musicals at LAMDA, RADA and Central, but I didn't think they were as good. Although I don't actually think LAMDA or RADA have musical courses so it was acting students.

With moving flats (don't get me started on the ethical practices of letting agents) and work travel, I'm rather behind with reviews, but somehow I did manage to check out some College Productions.

She Loves Me - Mountview

I got to see both casts in the Backstage Theatre. To me, this is the best Mountview production of the year. I'd heard it wasn't very traditional, but for Mountview standards, this was quite traditional. They are still doing the practice I don't like of blocking off most of the good seats for the favoured few, so although there are only three rows of seats, you feel like you're pushed out of the way as a paying customer. On the plus side, I did manage to avoid the pre-show interaction, but the Mountview cast mainly chose to interact with other students. This is always a charming musical, performed and sung very well, and sounding excellent in the small space of the Backstage Theatre.

Merrily We Roll Along (RCSSD)

I saw the first performance of this, from the front row. Nice venue and easy to travel to. I've seen a few students productions of Merrily. It's a tough show to sing. I thought the cast did well, but there's a mix of experience levels. Great set design for a student show. One oddity is they had a caption screen, but it was obscured behind the set for a lot of the show. This did, unfortunately, make it obvious when the cast were improvising a few of the lines. One thing I liked is they brought on the second year students as ensemble for a few songs, giving them the chance to get some stage experience. Not Mountview standards, but I'd happily go to RCSSD performances again.

Seen a few social media posts about Sunday in the Park going on sale at Mountview tomorrow.

Thanks, Mountview booking now open for Sunday (and some plays).

Anyone been to see the Rose Bruford shows at the Greenwich Theatre? I'm off to see The Grinning Man tomorrow. Saw the original London run quite a few times so I'm intrigued to see what this production will be like

I've just booked a seat for the Friday matinee. The 7pm evening performance has no availability while there's plenty for the 2pm.

I would not have known about this show without demelza's post which is a further indication of how difficult it is to find out about college shows. No central source of info AFAIK and minimal marketing.

I've seen excellent college (musicals) productions in Bristol  Birmingham and Cardiff but received no notification of their next shows. I've google searched other cities like Manchester, Liverpool and Leeds for college musicals with no success. I guess they are mainly aimed at industry personnel and  friends and families of students so general public attendance isn't considered important

Bird College in SE London is particularly frustrating as their musicals DO come up on a google search but can't be booked by outsiders - they have a production of Nine next week which I would really have liked to see. I contacted them about their shows in 2022 without success  (page 3 of this thread) and sadly the situation hasn't changed.

Has anyone got any experience of LSMT shows? They have a Sweeney Todd next month and into May. Thanks for the heads up on Sunday, also, I’ve booked and am really looking forward to it.

A last minute booking for the Grinning man for this afternoon’s performance at the Greenwich theatre.

A fantastic afternoon spent at the Greenwich theatre watching The Grinning Man. My first visit to the theatre and it really is a lovely venue and for the £10 ticket price , it was excellent value for a top quality actor-musician production. I also met up with fellow board member FrontrowverPaul which was a nice bonus along with being able to support up and coming talent in the industry.

As a production I thought the cast was top notch with some really lovely vocals and acting. The quality of the show was very impressive with a nice lighting design and set. The quality of the puppetry from where I was sat in the front row was also impressive.

It’s such a shame that it is only a handful of shows. If it was on longer I would have highly recommended a visit.

I was at the matinee today! It was my first Rose Bruford show, and I hadn't realised it was an actor-muso one when booking so that was a nice surprise! I think it added a really nice extra layer to the storytelling aspect of the show (Loved Barkilphedro on the sax!) There were several members of the original production in the audience and I thought it was great to see them supporting the production.

There were some really lovely performances in this, I particularly thought that Dea had a wonderful voice and presence, and I was glad to see the puppets! I wasn't sure if they'd have them or not.

It's a show that means a lot to me, so I hope that this is only the start of more productions cropping up!

Quite a few to cover from the past 24 hours…

Spring Awakening (Urdang)

My first trip to the Bernie Grant Arts Centre in the heart of Tottenham to see the Urdang Academy third years’ production of cult classic Spring Awakening.

It’s not a show I knew especially well, so this seemed the more frugal way of experiencing it compared to the upcoming fifteenth anniversary concert in the West End. For the most part, I enjoyed it. Clearly it tackles some tricky topics and that is I guess what makes it so compelling.

In an ensemble piece like this, it is hard to single anyone out but I was particularly engrossed by Issie Wilman’s performance as Martha, who is being abused physically and sexually by her father. The show’s highlight was her duet with Amber Weston (Ilse).

There are some great alternative rock numbers in what is quite a unique score. Another plus was Carly Brownbridge’s steam punk inspired costumes and makeup, very eye catching.

Spring Awakening is far from an easy watch but Duncan Sheik and Steven Sater have combined to create something quite captivating - and Urdang’s ‘Sheik cast’ gave me a great introduction to the piece.

Carrie (GSA)

Had to scratch the itch of seeing the show that is still to this day considered one of the biggest flops in Broadway history. Of course, this was a student production at Guildford School of Acting and - arguably, since the Southwark Playhouse revival with Evelyn Hoskins - there is quite a different perception of Carrie decades on.

It’s a show that taps into one of my core favourite genres when it comes to any form of the arts; high school drama. In this case, it’s a little more wild and bloody than even the likes of Heathers but you know what, there are some seriously good songs in Michael Gore’s score.

Luiseach McAleese gives a strong performance as Carrie White, a young girl sheltered by an overprotective religious mother. She sings the track beautifully.

The standout here though is Kacey Wadge, who delivers a vocally flawless performance as Carrie’s mum Margaret. Her range is exquisite. Also, a special mention for Rose Warburton as Chris, Carrie’s chief tormentor, who fulfils the teenage girl bully role with aplomb. She steals every scene she is in.

Overall, I actually really enjoyed Carrie. But act one is significantly stronger than the second, which is almost entirely focussed on the prom scene. I could have also done with more blood and gore - perhaps director Sibylla Archdale Kalid might have found inspiration from the final moments of Jamie Lloyd’s Sunset Boulevard.

Cinderella (Italia Conti)

I’d seen the 1997 musical film (featuring Brandy and Whitney Houston!) and heard a number of these songs at the recent Rodgers and Hammerstein anniversary concert but this was my first experience of seeing this Broadway version of Cinderella.

And it was another 10.30am start in Woking to catch the Italia Conti third-years’ ‘Palace cast’. I think because it’s a story we all know so well, it’s hard to avoid moments of it veering into cliche or even pantomime but, that being said, I loved every moment of this.

Rachel Sweet made for a fantastic Ella. She performed her numbers with a genuine maturity and sounded sublime throughout. Meanwhile, opposite her was Thomas Oxey who was suitably charming and floppy-haired as Topher. He nailed the comedy beats, especially during the proposal scene.

Esme Wilcox was delicious as Madame, the evil stepmother role, and had good chemistry with Antea Bosjnak (Charlotte) and Ellie Mathieson (Gabrielle).

I really enjoyed the staging, complete with fox and raccoon puppets. But it really was inspired to allow the actors to perform in their real life accents, making for a lovely patchwork of voices in the fairytale kingdom. I’d love to see this revived in London soon.