Him & Her
Audrey Longman Studio, Brentwood
Sunday 10th June 2012
After building an initial interest with Her, and maintaining the excitement with Him, the culmination of Vivid Musical Theatre's first concert series grew to a thrilling climax this week. A second performance of the final Him & Her concert was not only added, but managed to sell out too. A remarkable achievement for a company set up only six months ago, and testament to the impressive talent on display.
In this concert, both the girls and the boys from the first two concerts came together in a cast of 14 to portray a smorgasboard of new and unusual musical numbers. In a packed programme I will pick out my highlights, although every number was presented with style and skill by the consummate performers, who were entirely without a weak link among the whole ensemble.
The comedy songs lit up the room, with lots of light-hearted choices dotted throughout the programme. Carolyn got the best of the laughs in the first half, doing a wonderfully quirky job with Dan in "We're Just Friends" from I Love You Because, and then teaming up with Steve for the hilarious "Baptize Me" from the Broadway smash The Book of Mormon, which opens in the West End next year. "Can That Boy Foxtrot" from Side by Side, a group number by Diana, Emma and Roslyn was another particularly funny choice and the male company opened the second act clenching comedy props for "Single" from The Wedding Singer.
There were some beautiful choices too, such as the tender "You Rule My World" from The Full Monty, performed with heart by Louise and Sarah and the sentimental "The Next Ten Minutes" from The Last Five Years hauntingly sung by Sarah and Ian. Ian, this time teamed up with a suave Bob, also gave a charming rendition of "Pretty Women" from Sweeney Todd.
My pick of the show came quite early on however, with one of the relatively few solos in the production. Katie gave a belting performance of "See I'm Smiling" from The Last Five Years - a truly spine-tingling moment.
A simple theme running throughout all three of these concerts allowed for a huge range of song choices, but tied the whole series together with a clear, strong connection. Such thoughtful creativity and intent will stand the company in good stead for their future endeavours. The resounding success of this production is inarguable, and Vivid Musical Theatre's diligent producers should be very proud of their achievement.
In this concert, both the girls and the boys from the first two concerts came together in a cast of 14 to portray a smorgasboard of new and unusual musical numbers. In a packed programme I will pick out my highlights, although every number was presented with style and skill by the consummate performers, who were entirely without a weak link among the whole ensemble.
The comedy songs lit up the room, with lots of light-hearted choices dotted throughout the programme. Carolyn got the best of the laughs in the first half, doing a wonderfully quirky job with Dan in "We're Just Friends" from I Love You Because, and then teaming up with Steve for the hilarious "Baptize Me" from the Broadway smash The Book of Mormon, which opens in the West End next year. "Can That Boy Foxtrot" from Side by Side, a group number by Diana, Emma and Roslyn was another particularly funny choice and the male company opened the second act clenching comedy props for "Single" from The Wedding Singer.
There were some beautiful choices too, such as the tender "You Rule My World" from The Full Monty, performed with heart by Louise and Sarah and the sentimental "The Next Ten Minutes" from The Last Five Years hauntingly sung by Sarah and Ian. Ian, this time teamed up with a suave Bob, also gave a charming rendition of "Pretty Women" from Sweeney Todd.
My pick of the show came quite early on however, with one of the relatively few solos in the production. Katie gave a belting performance of "See I'm Smiling" from The Last Five Years - a truly spine-tingling moment.
A simple theme running throughout all three of these concerts allowed for a huge range of song choices, but tied the whole series together with a clear, strong connection. Such thoughtful creativity and intent will stand the company in good stead for their future endeavours. The resounding success of this production is inarguable, and Vivid Musical Theatre's diligent producers should be very proud of their achievement.
Sounds excellent, really gutted I missed it!
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