|
Stags &
Hens - September 2008
|
Well above bog standard
THE ICING on the cake of an outstanding Dynamo
Youth Theatre production is an energetically creative
curtain call.
Icing on the cake? Well, for all but the final
moments of Willy Russell's play the question is
whether any of the wedding cake will be eaten the
next day.
Dave and Linda are by chance having their stag
and hen parties in the same Portsmouth 'dive' (the
action having been sensibly transferred from the
original Liverpool).
Dave is in no state to have doubts. 'Had one too
many?' someone asks. 'No, it's his hobby, looking
down bogs.' comes the reply. But Linda has enough
doubts for both of them.
She is played by Amy Hathaway, the one member of
this senior Dynamo cast heading for drama school
and the performer with the subtlest range of expression.
The pain and anxiety do not always have to be given
words.
But this very funny production thrives as much
on the sheer exuberance of all the girls' acting.
Both they and the boys bring out the extent to which
the play is about friendship, and the different
forms it takes. And they make every character profoundly
individual.
Until Saturday.
MIKE ALLEN
The News
|
Top
|
West Side
Story - January 2008
|
Portsmouth News
|
Southern Daily Echo
|
 |
13th January 2008
Dear Madam/Sir,
In returning our 'Friends of Dynamo' personal
information slip to you, we would like to
take the opportunity of thanking your organisation
and the cast of 'West Side Story' for once
again giving us a wonderful evening's entertainment.
One can only guess at the amount of hard
work and number of hours put in by so many
people, to produce such a splendid show. From
the moment the show finished until we arrived
home some forty minutes later, my wife and
I talked about the musical, recalling our
highlights and the overall enthusiasm and
commitment put into the performance by the
cast. This has continued on and off over the
past few days, as we have meet friends. Once
again your company's production really impressed
us.
There were so many performances to savour.
The delicate singing of Alice Mayhead, the
brave performance of Ross Cobbold and Pippa
Stimpson's portrayal of Doc, readily come
to mind, but the whole cast is to be congratulated.
At a time when youth in general get such a
bad press, this is a shining example of what
is going on not just in Havant, but all over
the country, and rarely if ever gets coverage.
Congratulation to you all for another superb
evening's entertainment. We look forward to
seeing 'Alice in Wonderland' in May.
Yours,
David and Joy Porter
|
 |
Dear Andrew and the Cast
There was so much that I wanted to say to
you all after last night's wonderful performance
of one of the greatest musicals ever written.
West Side Story has always been a favourite
of mine since I first saw it in the early
60s and your performance last night would
have made the show's creators very proud indeed.
The colour, exuberance and fantastic use of
the space was worth the ticket price alone
and coupled with some truly emotional and
thoughtful acting and wonderful singing left
me at times both speechless and highly emotional.
Added to this was the superb choreography
to make a truly superb ensemble piece with
everyone contributing to the performance.
The costumes, set and all the other teams
of adults need the highest praise and congratulations
and the musical setting by John Gledall convinced
me that there must have been a full orchestra
hiding somewhere in the theatre.
I am sure that you will all have great memories
of the show and I for one will count it as
one of Dynamo Youth Theatre's finest productions
Have a great week.
Frank Hunwick
|
|
By
E-mail
|
|
Dear Andrew and Everyone at D.Y.T.
Just a short message to tell you all how
very much Don and I enjoyed Saturday's matinee
production. I wanted to say more back stage
but I felt the whole afternoon very emotional.
We were just "blown away" by the greetings
we received from friends that we had not seen
since we moved and then the production itself.
The sheer power and strength of all those
young people. They were not just on stage
but were acting on stage, every member seemed
truly dedicated to the show. The singing was
so strong and passionate, far above any standard
that we have seen in a youth group before,
in fact they ranked above some professional
productions that we have witnessed. The stagecraft
was genuinely outstanding.
We thank you, the crew and the company for
a brilliant afternoon, even though we feel
completely shattered today. Looking forward
to the wonders of Alice in Wonderland.
Kindest Regards.
Ann and Don. [Stewart]
|
Petersfield Post
|
|
The Jets in rehearsal at St faith's Church Hall
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Top
| 'The
News' (Portsmouth) 10th July 2007 |
|
Preview
A moving performance
By Mike Allen
The true story of a village stricken by the plague
through the arrival from London of a box of clothing
is being told within the atmospheric setting of
a 12th century church and its surroundings this
week.
Dynamo Youth Theatre will perform Don Taylor's
play, The Roses of Eyam, in promenade style in and
around St Faith's Church, Havant. The audience will
walk from scene to scene, encountering the villagers'
determination under the persuasion of present and
former rectors to prevent the spread of the disease
by remaining within the village - at the certain
risk of their own lives.
The Dynamo cast is aged 11-18.
|
.jpg)
Jake Elsbury as Edward Thornley and Alison Moyle
as Elizabeth Thornley
|
| Review
from St
Faith's parish magazine:- |
|
The Dynamo Youth Theatre presented a promenade production
of "Roses of Eyam" by Don Taylor
in St Faith's Church and Churchyard from 10th
to 14th July. With a cast of over
50, a crew of 30 as well as support by the committee
and parents, the director, Andrew Bowker achieved
the impossible dream: a three-hour performance by
teenagers which enthralled and moved those privileged
to be present.
The acting was totally focussed with the lines delivered
clearly and convincingly. The audience could
see well because of a new stage and raised acting
areas in various parts of the church and grounds.
Additional lighting and carefully chosen music enhanced
the experience. The costumes were imaginatively
made to reflect not only the 17th century
but also the various families represented.
Audience movement was sensitively handled by the
victims of the plague, assisted by the stewards,
which added atmosphere to the overall performance.
The contrast in the life of the village before and
after the arrival of the box of plague-carrying
cloth was clearly demonstrated. The audience
felt drawn into the dilemma of the remaining villagers
and the main characters did not spare themselves
in sharing their feelings.
Although the play presented a challenge to all concerned,
the success of the venture vindicated all the hard
work which must have gone into the preparation of
such an ambitious production.
The idea to use the church and grounds, situated
in the town centre, was brilliantly conceived and,
with the new platforms, could pave the way to further
worthwhile projects.
Geoff Porter
|
|
Many people were very
complimentary:-
|
|
|
| One
by E-mail: |
|
My wife and I were stunned by the production last
night. We were enthralled and moved by the wonderful
acting of the talented young people. What a brilliant
experience for all who took part. The organisation
was incredible and all credit to Andrew and his
helpers. We shall never forget it.
A sincere thank you to all concerned. Keep up
the good work.
Best wishes,
Geoff. & Marion Porter.
|
| |
|
Dear Andrew,
Margaret and I would like to again send you our
warmest congratulations for a stunning evening.
The acting was without doubt some of the best and
most emotional that we have seen in Dynamo's long
and distinguished history. From the leads to the
smaller parts, all were carried out with total conviction
and belief in the character. The scene changes were
beautifully and subtly carried out and added enormously
to the theatrical experience and the beauty of the
church was emphasised by the highly imaginative
yet simple staging and lighting and the music was
glorious and added so much to the drama and emotion
of the play.
I hope the rain keeps away and yet even that cannot
dampen the amazing experience that the audiences
will have during the run.
Thanks and congratulations to you all.
Frank Hunwick.
|
| |
|
Congratulations to all involved with the Dynamo
Youth Theatre. You all rose to the magnificent challenge
of a morality play in St Faiths Church and succeeded.
It was lovely to see the imaginative use of space
and the standard of acting was great.
Best Wishes
Sheilah Legg
|
| |
|
Dear Andrew and DYT
I just wanted to write to you while Roses of Eyam
was still fresh in my mind.
What a show … what a team… what a challenge!!
Site specific performances are special no matter
where they are but St Faiths church provided the
most beautiful, evocative and emotional setting
for the play. I believe, this challenge, although
I'm sure a logistical nightmare and at times seeming
unreachable, has stretched everyone to their limits
in terms of design, technical restrictions, direction
and acting and in doing so, I think has brought
out the best in everyone.
Staging and Lighting were simple in design but
hugely effective. The movement of the play used
the space to its maximum, creating special moments
throughout, and the quality of the acting and commitment
of all of the actors was lifted due to the atmosphere
of the setting and, I know it goes without saying,
extreme hard work.
A truly unique event, full of special moments
that you and your audience should keep forever.
Remember this one….
Detta
|
| |
|
Dear Mr Bowker
Having visited Eyam in Derbyshire a couple of
years ago, I took Annie to see the Roses of Eyam
on Saturday night.
I just wanted to drop you a line to say how much
we both enjoyed it; the setting was perfect as the
backdrop to such a tragic tale; the acting was outstanding
and the ending was stunning. It took me a few moments
to work out that there were more ghosts than we
had seen in the play… a brilliant way to finish
- I haven't been to a performance that moved me
so much in a long time. Annie thought it was incredible
too.
So … just a huge 'well done!'
Yours sincerely,
Tracy Cooper
|
| |
|
|
Dear Producer & Cast of Roases of Eyam,
My husband and I watched the Thursday production
of your play at St Faith's Church, Havant. With
us were our two visitors from Australia. We'd like
to thank you all for a wonderful evening - we all
loved it!
A great production with so many clever touches
to keep the action alive (or dead!). Particularly
we thought the clever 'curtain call' with the dead
walking through the rest of the cast was so clever.
As you can imagine, the venue was so exciting for
the Australians - atmosphere galore - it was great.
We thank you and wish you well in all future productions.
C. Treagust (Mrs)
Farlington.
|
| |
Snowman for Roses of Eyam
Steve Phillips reports on the techniques
he used to make it.
Click
here
|
Top
Bizarre
11th-13th May 2007
This was the first time the Director's
Challenge, for the Liz Goodbody Shield, was performed
for the public.
Two days after the competition three special performances
were judged by a paying audience.
|
|
|
|
Our production of 'Tommy' the
rock opera written by Pete Townshend and the Who,
completed its run in January, with sell out audiences
and great reviews.
Performances: January 3rd -6th
2007
|
|
Pinball’s
Wizard
Tommy
Havant
Arts Centre
Raw
energy, raw enthusiasm, raw talent. All entirely
appropriate to a project that grew from the hard-rock
world of the late 1960’s.
But although Dynamo Youth Theatre’s production
of Tommy is as loud as something by Pete Townshend
and The Who should be, it also has more refined
qualities.
They
emerge in such matters as use of psychedelic colours
and stylised movement, sensitivity to period and
creation of a stepped set help manage a large
cast in a small space.
And
they emerge, too, in the performances of the actors
who play Tommy at six, 12 and fully grown.
The
boy traumatised when he sees his farther kill
his mother’s lover is played first by Dominic
Moss and Matthew Kenny, who not only display admirable
stillness but convey a true sense of pathos.
The
abuse of the 12-year-old certainly as much a part
of the 21st century as it was of the mid-20th
is rightly painful to watch.
Richard
Bailey has the dominant role of the adult Tommy
who emerges from his trauma to become a Pinball
Wizard and a kind of spiritual leader before deciding
he just wants to be like everyone else.
The
actor encompasses the character’s range of moods
well and his singing has all the required power.
That word ‘raw’ springs to mind again not in a
derogatory sense. On the first night, some of
the early singing was lost beneath the sound of
a pulsating band, and even when that was tweaked,
some performers had to force their voices excessively.
But
the acting of the other principals is largely
admirable - notably by Louise Moyle as Tommy’s
mother and Callum West as his slimeball uncle.
Mike
Allen
Portsmouth
News
The Guide, Friday January 5, 2007
|
|
