Sweet Charity

What an imaginative, skilled production Dean Bryant has devised of this work from which come “Hey, Big Spender” and several other musical hits; and what able talent has pitched in to make it the thoroughly delightful experience it is.  

The interaction of cast with audience was amusing from the outset, with members of the female ensemble, in keeping with their roles, had several male audience members on stage dancing with them before the start.  Being “dance-hall hostesses”, whose job it is to encourage men to dance with them, they appealed directly to the audience through much of the tale.

The set design was consistently interesting, making effective use throughout of what seemed to be large one-way mirrors, making them seem sometimes highly reflective, sometimes quite transparent, and allowing for their use as various items of architecture and interior decor.  The very effective lighting added much, facilitating suitable mood changes and making brilliant use of the semi-transparent panels.  The costumes too, though designed to attract the male gaze, were believable as items of work costumery in a dance hall.

Possibly the work’s most impressive aspect was Andrew Hallsworth’s choreography—imaginative, cheeky, fun, and very tight: a real treat, as was the live five- and six-piece band.  The music the band played during interval demonstrated dexterity and tunefulness even in improvisation, not a note out of place.  More unusually, with the exception of some weakness in the most challenging song of all—the matchless “Rhythm of Life”, which requires careful balance between a large number of voices—the cast’s singing too was consistently superb.

Chuckleworthy to hilarious throughout, Sweet Charity is (despite mood changes) pure entertainment.  Don’t miss it.

John P. Harvey

Photographer: Jeff Busby