Vane Tempest Theatre Group
Established 1976
Contact Secretary: secretary@vttg.co.uk
Keeping Theatre 'Alive' in Seaham
Included on this page are a selection of recent reviews of our productions - for historical reviews please visit out Previous Productions page and click on the show you wish to find a review on.
This is the North East Premiere of this lively show, new to the local amateur circuit. The show starts with a lyrical warm up session of nostalgic songs provided by Ruth Gleghorn. The ensemble, under the baton of their musical director Enid Jones, then opens with a thrilling chorus of voices, singing all those well known favourites, that sets the scene and prepares their audience for the treat to come.
The perils of war-time are not ignored, but in true English fashion, if you can laugh at disaster you can cope with it. And laughs there are aplenty. Lindsey Southwick and Diane Henderson are the housewives in the know about everything, off and on the ration, and Gordon Richardson and Maurice McShane as the air raid wardens provide the slapstick element. The school concert provides more than a few smiles and titters, just wait until you see the diminutive Ben Southwick making his debut as a cockerel and what goes on in the local cinema is nobody’s business.
The show contains something for everyone showing how the ordinary lives of the Parker family, not forgetting Grandma who has seen it all before, is disrupted by the war. How the spirits of the troops are ‘raised’ by the camp concert, under the stern eye of their sergeant major played by Stephen White a new face with the group and one to be watched.
Everyone will go out singing, because for once they will all know the words as all the songs are pure nostalgia and eminently sing-able from the first note to the last.
To celebrate the society's 30th anniversary, this concert was a collection of songs from the shows performed by the group over the past three decades. Peppered between the songs were facts and reminiscences about the history of the group. Delivered mainly conversationally, these interjections proved both interesting and informative.
The two sections that stood out were selected numbers from "The Sound of Music" and "South Pacific". Elsewhere in the running order there were some unusual choices of song and perhaps a few more "toe-tappers" could have been included. The more up-beat songs tended to be buched together, leaving long spells of ballds and slow songs. This made for an uneven evening although it has to be said that the performances were all extremely good. When the chorus moved it proved very effective and fitting, and the final half dozen songs or so allowed the whole society more of a chance to shine. The harmonies in songs such as those from "Die Fledermaus" were excellent. Following taking the lead in the socity's first musical, "The Desert Song", Margaret Keen returned to sing "Romance" which proved to be a touching and poignant contribution.
At the end of the show, the group performed "The Trolley Song" from their next show "Meet Me in St. Louis" - on the strength of thiss, I look forward to November already!
I LOVE a farce, and this is one, written by Sandy Wilson, has lots of very good music, the kind you want to sing along with. Written in the early 50's, it is very 'Roaring Twenties,' sometimes hilariously funny and always tuneful. This group has an exceptional chorus too, and with strong leads in Gillian Biffetti, Laura Swinburne, Tom Morris and Maurice McShane, colourful costumes, and sometimes colourful directing by Kevin Thornhill, the mixture is just right.
Heather Hepple is very good as the French Maid, with the best French accent this side of France. Perfectly cast, she has lots of work to do, linking the show together. In contrast, the pupils from Madamme Dubonnet's Finishing School in Nice are very BBC English, fresh, alive and young.
There is so much talent here. Tony is well played by Tom Morris, in a quite seductive manner, and Ruth Southwick's portrayal of Maisie is word, note and dance perfect - you can she is enjoying it. This chorus has a fine line up of clever and talented young men and women. Lord Brockhurst, a would-be gigolo, is pursued relentlessly by his long suffering wife, played by Mavis Thornhill - as usual, word perfect. The duet, beautifully sang by Gillian and Laura is the most wonderful sound. Tom just gets better and better, and Maurice I'm sure, can play any part well. Of course the usual mix-up of partners magically resolves itself, as all the best farces do. I didn't like the film of The Boyfriend, but this show is very good indeed.