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Next production
Brigadoon,
15th to 18th February, 19:15 and 15:15 on Saturday
The 2012 Hungerford Town Show. A musical play in 2 acts by Lerner and Loewe which tells a fantastic tale of mystery and romance set in the Highlands of Scotland.
The 1947 Broadway production ran for 581 performances. The 1949 West
End production ran for 685 performances. The 1954 film starred Gene
Kelly and Cyd Charisse. Songs such as Almost Like Being in Love
have become standards. Two Americans, Tommy Albright and his pal
Jeff Douglas, chance upon a small Scottish village in a Highland
mist. They discover that Brigadoon is an enchanted place that only
comes to life for one day every hundred years. Tommy and Jeff meet
Fiona and Meg, and Tommy and Fiona soon find in each other a deep
understanding. The show follows the villagers through a day that
includes a wedding and we learn that if one of the inhabitants
should leave Brigadoon the spell will be broken for ever. There is
near disaster when a young Scot tries to take his revenge. He dashes
towards the forest but is killed making his escape. Happiness is
changed to mourning. Tommy has by now fallen deeply in love with
Fiona but he is told he cannot stay. He goes back with Jeff to New
York and quarrels with his fiancée. He then sees a vision of Fiona
and knows he must return to Scotland. There by the power of love he
reawakens the slumbering Brigadoon just long enough for him to be
reunited with Fiona.
Where
John O’ Gaunt Community & Technology College, Hungerford.
Tickets
Tickets from Crown Needlework, 115 High Street, Hungerford
Tel: 01488 684011 - Credit and debit cards accepted.
Review of The Likes of Us
23rd to 26th February 2011.
Review from the Newbury Weekly News.
One spirited communityMore than 60 actors and dancers in town showCommunity of Hungerford Theatre Company: The Likes of Us, at the Corn Exchange, from Wednesday, February 23 to Saturday, February 26 It is widely believed that Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat was the first collaboration between Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice. That distinction, however, belongs to The Likes of Us, the story of Dr Barnardo and his struggle to help homeless children in Victorian London, which was written in 1965 when Lloyd Webber was just 17. The Likes of Us never achieved the critical acclaim of later shows and was largely ignored until it was 40 years old, when the composers tidied it up for the 2005 Sydmonton Festival. Now available to amateur groups, the Berkshire première was presented last week al the John O'Gaunt Community Technical College by the Community of Hungerford Theatre Company. This was a true community production, and demonstrated that the Hungerford area can draw on a very large pool of theatrical talent when it needs to. The 60-plus actors and dancers, under David Clayton's imaginative direction, exuded enthusiasm and remained animated throughout the many crowd scenes, while Tara Burden's lively choreography made good use of the limited stage space. Live music was sensitively provided by a small ensemble under the baton of Jo Pollitt - it's such a relief when the orchestra accompanies the performers rather than drowning them. The show is made up of a series of musical episodes from Barnardo's life, as he battles against hostility and self-doubt to introduce his social reforms. Matt Worth, in the lead role, managed to convey Barnardo's anxiety and determination, and he was tunefully supported by Charlotte Shanahan as Syrie, the patient co-campaigner who later became Barnardo's wife, and by the charismatic Helen Bonner as the hearty Oliver-style pub singer Rose. Mark Foster and the mellifluously voiced Zoe Hobbs were also very well cast as the hapless lovers Johnny and Jenny. Continuity between the musical numbers was provided by two engaging narrators (fine performances by Richard Hewitt and Hoffi Munt), who filled in the gaps in the slightly meandering plot with wry humour. The songs themselves provided an opportunity for several good cameos from the supporting cast, such as Paul Hyde as the auctioneer who led a well drilled chorus in Going Going Gone (apparently the first Rice/Lloyd Webber song ever written), and Tony Brown as the haughty prime minister surrounded by his cabinet colleagues who gave a hilarious rendering of A Lion Hearted Land. The rousing chorus number Have Another Cup of Tea was particularly memorable, while cheeky junior Jacob Smith and his 'sweetheart' Abbie Cleary stole the show with Man of the World during the wedding scene. As with all community productions, it's the combined efforts of the many individuals on stage and behind the scenes that make the production a success, and in this respect CHTC have scored a real hit for the community. Well done, all. MARK LILLYCROP |
Previous Productions
The Likes of Us, 23rd to 26th February 2011
The Dracula Rock Show, 10th July 2010 - a
Hungerford Children’s Theatre
production
The Cleaners, 10th to 11th June 2010 - a
Hungerford Youth Theatre production
Grimm Tales, 20th March 2010 - a Hungerford Young Performers
production
Carousel, 17th to 20th February 2010. See the review in the Archive.
A Cream Cracker Under the Settee, A Dog's Life,
Still Waters, 20th to 25th July 2009, in HADCAF
Robin Hood and Friends, 27th June 2009
The Love Nest, 28th to 30th May 2009
The Fate of King Minos, 28th March 2009
The King and I, 18th to 21st February 2009. See the review in
the Archive.
Down at the Old Bull & Bush, 7th to 8th July 2008
Snow-White and the Seven Dwarfs, 5th July 2008
Love Begins at Fifty, 6th to 7th June 2008. See the
review in the Archive.
Blitz!, 20th to 23rd February 2008. See the review
in the Archive.
Gone With The Books, 21st to 22nd September 2007. See the
review in the Archive.
Romeo and Juliet, 7th July 2007 - a
Hungerford Children’s Theatre
production
Two Short Socks, 6th July 2007 - a
Hungerford Youth Theatre production
Hello Dolly, 14th to 17th February 2007. See the review in the
Archive.
Flower Drum Song, 15th to 18th February 2006. See the review in the
Archive.
Scheherazade, Tales of Arabian Nights, 8th July 2006
Anon, 30th June 2006, at HADCAF. See the review in the
Archive.
The Gut Girls, 6th to 7th June 2005
Annie Get Your Gun, 16th to 19th February 2005. See the review in the
Archive.
The Piper, Easter 2005 - a Hungerford Young Performers
production