...

.....oh dear, that's it!      Bye bye cast and crew. See you next year!

East Anglian Times Review, August 2nd

West Side Story, Suffolk Young People's Theatre, Theatre Royal, Bury St Edmunds.

AS it approaches its 50th Anniversary West Side Story can still inspire people to whistle the score as they leave the theatre.

It is even more remarkable that the Suffolk Young People's Theatre can produce a performance, which does justice to Leonard Bernstein's music and Stephen Sondheim's lyrics after just ten days of rehearsals. The decision to celebrate the group's 25th Anniversary with a return to this classic and tragic tale of love and division was justified by a packed house. Producing this timeless musical on so small a stage, with its flamboyant dance sequences and large fight scenes, not only required excellent choreography but also innovative set design.

Commanding lead performances from Jonathon Lodge as Tony and Lisa Bowman as Maria breathed genuine life into the central love story. Both combined strong singing voices with excellent control and, in the case of Maria, an authentic Puerto Rican accent.
 Chemistry is all-important in any love story and the portrayal of Tony and Maria's doomed relationship was expertly carried off.

Among the show's famous numbers two stood out as exceptional.
 The Latino exuberance of "America" sung by the Shark's girls not only sounded good but also worked well visually, aided by excellent choreography and marvellous costumes. This was equalled by a delightfully mischievous and cynical rendition of "Gee, Officer Krupke" by the members of the Jets.

The dance sequences were performed with great energy helping to add to the dramatic tension between the rival gangs. Despite occasional delays in reorganising sets between scenes, the pace of the story was well-maintained.

The future of West Side Story continues to look safe. Its themes of racial tension and love are still as pertinent today as they were 400 years ago when Shakespeare first penned Romeo and Juliet. In addition, on the strength of this performance, the Suffolk Young People's Theatre also looks set to continue entertaining audiences in the region while simultaneously providing a taste of the stage for many youngsters.   West Side Story by the Suffolk Young People's Theatre runs until Saturday August 2 2003. Tickets available from Theatre Royal, Bury St Edmunds.  Box Office (01284) 769505.

Stewart Charman

Bury Free Press  Review, August 8th

A VIVID re-imagining of ballet, opera and literary romance, West Side Story is as fresh and dazzling today as when it was first staged in 1956.

An ideal vehicle for a young company, this is the third time SYPT has staged the show and the show is another outstanding success for performers and directors. The sheer exuberance and physical skill of the dancers was stunning. The well-choreographed ensemble numbers and fight scenes were exceptionally well performed by the young cast. My only quibble would be that in this production, perhaps based on the stage original rather than the film, dramatic tension was dissipated by hearing humorous songs like I Feel Pretty and the show stopping Officer Krupke in the second half — after the tragedy of the gang fight and the deaths of Riff and Bernardo. The company did manage to rebuild the tension. It was unfortunate that people in the audience broke out in ripples of nervous laughter when the final gunshot that seals the tragedy rang out. But someone in the audience was sobbing audibly after Tony died onstage. Maria carried on gamely, seizing the gun and asking ‘Are there enough bullets for you? Or you?…..so long as there is one left for me’ over the sound of suppressed weeping.

The whole company deserves high praise for achieving this impressive result in a mere ten days of rehearsal time. John Rogerson turned in a tremendously professional and engaging performance as Riff, the leader of the Jets. Jonathan Lodge as his right hand man Tony doesn’t look the classic romantic hero but he has an amazingly mellifluous voice. As Maria; Lisa Bowman was winningly gauche and her soaring voice was equal to the demands of the role. Jessica Pidsley was a raunchy, fiery Anita, teasingly sarcastic in I like to be in America, and bitterly tragic for A boy like that. Notable performances also came from Mark Kerr, edgy and explosive as Action, Chris Hallum, dryly comical as A-rab and Chris Hart, a superb dancer with a mass of cherubic golden curls, as Baby John. Instead of a duet by Maria and Tony, Teresita (Gaily Kerr) sang the heartrending There’s a place for us as a sublime solo, and the rest of the company were brought onstage to join in, underlining the fact that all  the street teenagers deserved a better chance in life.

Suffolk Young People’s Theatre Evaluation Summary

West Side Story 2003

(28 anonymous evaluation sheets returned)

Please circle your judgements on the first five questions:   

 1 = excellent   to  6 = very poor

1) How enjoyable  did you find this year’s SYPT summer school?   Excellent/Very Good 100%

2) How good did you find the overall organisation?   Excellent/Very Good 95%  Good 5%

3) What quality was the learning experience for you of  this year’s SYPT?   Excellent/Very Good 95%   Good/Satisfactory 5%

4) In  your judgement how do you rate the  rehearsals  Excellent/Very Good 75% Good 25%   *

5) In your judgement how do you rate quality of the final show?   Excellent/Very Good 100%

6) What was the best things you enjoyed about this  year’s production? Great Cast commitment / Dancing /  Making lots of new friends,

7) Was there anything about this year’s production you did not enjoy and could be improved for the future (only 10 returns to this question!) Rehearsal Organisation / waiting / more parts for everyone

8) Apart from next year’s possibly committed production  which  production do you think we should consider doing in the future?               Grease, Chicago, Sound of Music, Oklahoma, Les Miserable, Lion King, Tommy, South Pacific, Chess, Sweet Charity                       

Have you any other comments about this year’s SYPT experience you would like to make? (or your parents if they wish!)

• “Lots of fun doing a very professional show”
• “It was great”
• “I enjoyed it thoroughly –quality of people and standard of performance”
• “It is so good to do a theatre summer school. SYPT has such a splendid feeling for me”
• “It is fantastic – long may it continue in the future”
• “I have loved every second of the show and am going to miss everyone”
• “It was really good, I enjoyed it so much and hope to come to next year’s”
• “It was fab as SYPT is always loving”
• “Great people to work with”
• “I again have had  a wonderful time. Many thanks to Ray and Brian”
• “It has been a really good experience – learning what it takes to make a successful show”
• “Thank you for another great year”
• “Ray has pulled it off again”