Presented by Adelaide Theatre Academy
Reviewed 4 March 2018
The Adelaide Theatre Academy had two casts for this production, I saw the Downtown Cast and was immediately impressed by the urchins, Issy Derwent, Verity Lopresti-Zotti and Issie Mennillo. Harmonies were spot on and they moved with style. Director Michelle Davy has chosen well for her casts and there is an abundance of talent on display. Nina Richards as Choreographer has given them interesting choreo that suits the space and drilled them. MD Millicent Sarre has brought out the best musically and Mark Delaine, as conductor has melded his small but excellent band to this very large cast with good results.
In the lead roles, Oliver John is perfect as Seymour, playing a nerd with heart that sings well. His duets with the plant are good. Paige Dobie, who gave us a very sweet rendition of Somewhere That’s Green, brings his love interest, Audrey, to life. Their duet Suddenly Seymour was a highlight. Joel Castrechinni, who does a great job of portraying an older character, plays the flower shop owner. The nasty dentist is Harry McGinty and he does it all with flair!
The stand out of the production was without doubt Zoe Foskett who voiced the plant! This diminutive little lady has a big voice with lots of expression. Her version of Feed Me was lots of fun. I’m sure we will get to see much more of her in the future. The chorus worked very hard and there were many small cameos brought to life by enthusiastic cast members.
This production had a very short run and unfortunately I saw it on the last day or I would be recommending that you support these very dedicated youngsters and the fine team behind them. Watch out for their next production.
Reviewed by Fran Edwards
Twitter: @franeds
Rating out of 5: 5
Season ended
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