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The King And I
Presented by: MLOC Productions
Venue:
Phoenix Theatre, Elwood
Reviewer: Kate Williams
Date Reviewed: 15th June 2007
Friday night
was the opening of MLOC’s production of The King and I at Elwood’s
Phoenix Theatre. The Rogers and Hammerstein musical-comedy was
bought to life by MLOC’s co-directors Roy and Jenni Mears and an
energetic cast of 50.
The King was
entertainingly portrayed by Albert Ip whose physicality (resembling
a character from a dubbed 50’s Kung Fu movie - I was waiting for his
voice to become out of sync) was amusing and he contrasted and
complimented the poised Anna, played by Emma Watts. The leading
roles of the King and Anna are more challenging than they seem as
the friendship and understanding forged between the two must go no
further than that, a rarity in musical theatre.
Congratulations to Ip and Watts as they pulled off the roles
convincingly. Anna’s singing was beautiful, though it lacked
force/projection. Ip’s was entertaining though he lacked good
diction and he seemed to overlook the wittiness of the lyrics which
deprived the audience of some much needed comic relief. These
negative aspects were heightened by the venue’s poor sound and
ultimately detracted from the overall performance.
Tup Tim was
played by the adorable Georgie Walker who suited the role to a tee,
her hopeful and wistful gazes allowed me to feel a connection with
her character, a goal that I felt no-one else achieved. (Though I
believe I would have believed Anna had I been able to hear her) Tup
Tim’s love interest Lun Tha was sincerely played by Danny May who
did well with what he was given. The two shared a cute chemistry on
stage and their singing was some of the best directed in the show,
however their physical direction seemed lackluster - I wondered why
they sung their songs to the audience and not to each other.
Rubin Matters
who played the son of the King, Prince Chululongkorn was great, he
seized every opportunity he was given and lit up the stage with his
presence, definite potential for this young performer.
The ensemble
of wives, guards, princes and princesses did well to maintain energy
and characters, which were defined by Jeremy Bailey-Smith’s
fantastic costumes. All of the costumes were appropriate, fitting,
and contrasting. At points some of the performers looked a little
uncomfortable moving about the stage in their costumes, particularly
Watts in her massive dresses, however, I’m sure that a comfort will
grow with the progression of the season.
I felt Laura
Hamilton’s choreography hit the mark in some places but she missed
some great opportunities in others. The “Small House of Uncle
Thomas” ballet was fantastic, but I felt as though rehearsal time
must have run out after choreographing it as it left other scenes
such as “Shall We Dance” with little to no choreography at all.
The sets were
fantastic in some scenes such as the inside of the castle with
classically oriental bright reds and yellows, however they seemed
inconsistent to the outside sets which had as rose vines creeping up
the seemingly western concrete columns. The sets however, were done
justice by Michael Richardson’s simple and effective lighting.
Overall the
MLOC provides a great night out with fun, family entertainment. If
you’re looking for something to warm your weekend, this cast will
provide you with a sincere performance of the Rogers and Hammerstein
classic, The King and I.
Kate has been
involved in amateur theatre since 2002, some of her credits include
PTC’s Fame: The Musical, Bye Bye Birdie (Mae ‘Mamma’ Peterson),
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat (Mrs Potiphar) and
Grease. Kate spent all of 2006 performing as ‘Tess Tickle’ in
Hunchbax Theatre Restaurant’s “Good Will Humping”. More recently
Kate performed in PLOS’ The Wizard of Oz and Limelight’s Australian
Amateur Premier of Blood Brothers (Linda) and is currently
rehearsing for PLOS’ Beauty and the Beast. Kate has a Bachelor of
Arts (drama) and is achieving her Graduate Diploma of Education
(Drama/Media Studies).
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