Last year I was lucky enough to review well over 100 different productions that have either started in, or visited, the region. We are very lucky to have so many great venues locally and even luckier that the management of those venues seek out, or create, shows with extremely high production values. So, following a festive season that has seen many of our local venues present top class pantomimes and Christmas shows, I have looked back through the productions of 2018 and have selected what I believe to be the top 10 shows of the year…
10: Holiday on Ice… Time – Brighton Centre
When the full company take to the ice there are almost 30 people jumping, turning and travelling at breakneck speed around the ice and so the choreography, in the bigger numbers, is relatively safe, but when it is the turn of any of the eight Principals to show off their incredible talent, the moves are much more intricate and are dangerous enough to produce audible gasps from everyone in the opening night audience.
9: Madagascar the Musical – Theatre Royal, Brighton
The moment that all of the children, and an unnecessarily large number of the adults, in the audience have been waiting for arrives. In a blaze of coloured lights and with a thumping bass line that gets us all clapping along, King Julien launches into the showstopping hit, “I Like to Move It” and, for a man performing on his knees, Jo Parsons “moves it” really very well!
8: Grease – White Rock Theatre, Hastings
It is very easy to forget that this is a summer project production, that has had just nine days of rehearsals, because Suzanne Lowe’s choreography is supremely slick, Wendy Hamed’s costumes are perfect and the whole production has a really authentic “High School” feel to it, with the central core of lead characters surrounded by a massively enthusiastic and talented company.
7: The Comedy About a Bank Robbery – Theatre Royal, Brighton
This is a real laugh-a-minute show with madcap situations evolving throughout the piece and, just when you think it can’t get any crazier, they ramp up the comedy another notch and prove that there really is no limit to how silly they can be.
6: Emerald Storm – The Hawth, Crawley
Emerald Storm is so much more than an Irish Dance show, as evidenced by the amazingly acrobatic and gymnastic contemporary dance solo routine performed by Rebecca Hawkins, the comedic capers of Ben Farrall as he tries to impress the ladies with his dancing and the fiery passion of Stephen Johnson, Jade Spooner, Brendan Crawford and Sophia Parton who perform a ballroom dance piece that would right at home on Strictly.
5: Evita – The Hawth, Crawley
Ever since it first appeared in the West End, way back in 1978, Evita has been recognised as one of the truly great musicals and now, in the more than capable hands of Lucy O’Byrne and Glenn Carter in two of the lead roles, that well-deserved reputation will undoubtedly continue.
4: Goodbye Rosetta – The Brighton Fringe Festival
The nine supremely talented young people in this production have achieved something that very few performers do – they don’t look, or sound, like they are acting. Their performances are so wonderfully natural that it’s almost like we are watching a proper “reality show”. Goodbye Rosetta tells a tale that is so current, so real and so true, it’s justifiably the hottest ticket at the fringe!
3: Some Mothers Do ‘Ave ‘Em – Devonshire Park Theatre, Eastbourne
There is no doubt that taking such an iconic character from the screen to the stage is a very dangerous task but, in the incredibly capable (but quite slippery) hands of Joe Pasquale, Frank Spencer has burst into the 21st century with a bang – well, several bangs really!
2: Fame – Assembly Hall Theatre, Tunbridge Wells
Nick Winston’s heart-stoppingly brilliant 30th anniversary production of Fame the Musical is not just incredibly slick and unbelievably emotional, it is one of the best musical productions that I have seen in many years. The choreography is innovative and tight as a drum, the lighting and sound design give the production a gritty reality and the incredible score is played to perfection by the band, under the direction of Dustin Conrad.
1: War Horse – Brighton Centre
Although we have witnessed many dramatic and emotional scenes throughout the play, as we head towards the end of the piece, and all the strands of storyline come together, the emotional intensity is increased further for the final twenty minutes. After the drama has reached it’s conclusion, the amazingly talented cast take their bows and soak up the appreciation from an audience who have taken to their feet. As the applause finally dies down, I hear the lady behind me say “As long as I live I will never forget this show”, a sentiment echoed by many who have witnessed this truly incredible production.