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| The cast of "Heathers - The Musical" |
Directed by
Kelly Roberts and Grant Pegg – Musical Direction by Matthew WebsterChoreographed
by Natthan Rutups – Costumes designed by Jennie NorberrySet Designed by Chris
Zuber – Lighting designed by Carl Makin and Grant PeggPresented by Dramatic
Productions.
Gungahlin Theatre 12th to 27th October 2018.
Reviewed by
Bill Stephens.
“It certainly ain’t Mary Poppins” murmured an audience
member at interval. It certainly isn’t. More a cheeky hybrid of “Grease” and
“The Rocky Horror Show”, which concerns itself issues of teenage sex, youth
suicide and homosexuality in a manner that some might find confronting and
others, refreshing.
Based on a 1989 cult film, “Heathers - The
Musical”, is set in the fictional
Westerberg High, newbie, Veronica Sawyer (Belle Nicol) attracts the attention
of the powerful and ruthless school clique, known as The Heathers, because each
of the three leaders, played with panache, by Charlotte Gearside, Maddy Betts
and Mikayla Brady, is called Heather. She also attracts two obnoxious
sex-absorbed jocks, Ram and Kurt, portrayed with delicious enthusiasm by Pippin
Carroll and Pierce Jackson.
Veronica, however, is more interested in a slightly
creepy, but intriguing loner named J.D. (Will Huang) who, despite his
spectacular way of dealing with bullies, comes with considerable baggage and
startlingly dark habits.
For their pitch-perfect perfect, exuberant production,
Directors Kelly Roberts and Grant Pegg have drawn excellent performances from their
predominately young cast, who attack the witty dialogue and catchy songs with
admirable gusto. Tight direction, colourful costumes, snappy dance routines and
some cleverly staged, slow motion fight sequences, provide spectacle and enough
sugar-coating to disguise some of the darker, less beguiling aspects of the
show.
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| Will Huang (J.D. and Belle Nicol (Veronica Sawyer) |
Both Nicol and Huang, in the central roles of Veronica
and J.D, sing attractively and offer thoughtfully nuanced performances which
hold the attention throughout. Similarly each of the Heathers offer
impressively differentiated characterizations while maintaining their strong
presence as a team. Several of the cast play multiple roles, but Chelsea Heaney
is a stand-out as both the scorned Martha Dunnstock, and the inspirational
teacher, Pauline Fleming.
Armed with a
repertoire of stylish dance moves, choreographer, Nathan Rutups, has
devised a succession of high-energy routines, so polished and in-tune with the
material, that it’s hard to imagine these songs being done any other way. The
cast toss them off with reckless confidence and obvious enjoyment, while still managing
to maintain tricky harmonies and, generally, successfully compete with the
enthusiasm of Matthew Webster’s sizzling hot on-stage band.
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| Maddy Betts (Heather Duke) - Charlotte Gearside (Heather Chandler) - Mikayla Brady (Heather McNamara) |
Chris Zuber’s clever floating school locker setting
works like a dream, with set-pieces effortlessly and efficiently manipulated
around the stage by the cast, allowing for a seamless transition of scenes.
Only the haphazard lighting, which, too often on opening night left crucial
cast members shrouded in darkness, disappointed.
With its witty dialogue, catchy songs and exuberant
performances, this production of “Heathers – the Musical” lives up to Dramatic
Productions promise of delivering the highest quality community theatre to
Gungahlin and the Canberra Region, and is certainly well worth travelling to
Gungahlin to experience.
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| The ensemble for "Heathers - The Musical" |
Photos by Janelle McMenamin
This review first published in CITY NEWS on 15.10.18