Barnum brims with magic

OPENING night of one of Newhaven College’s best ever shows Barnum – The Circus Musical drew a standing ovation from the packed house at the Wonthaggi arts centre on Friday.

The audience erupted in to cheers, whistles and loud shouts of appreciation for the whole cast and crew that delivered a brilliant show that would definitely have given Melbourne’s Barnum that opened the same night, a run for its money.

There was plenty of razzle dazzle from the kaleidoscope of colourful costumes, superb singing, music, dancing and circus tricks, it was visual delight and a whirligig of activity that made for a totally awesome production, being hailed as one of the best ever college productions.

And it wasn’t just the audience that was so impressed with the show – the young cast couldn’t contain their excitement and sheer joy that they had pulled off an amazing show.

Accolades there are many and it is really hard to pick the stand outs -definitely a battle royale between the talented lead PT Barnum, expertly played by Loch’s Jonah van Stekelenburg, 17 who made sure his trade mark Humburg was not in short supply and his long suffering but feisty wife Charity, played to perfection by the gorgeous Alannah Coghlan who sang so sweetly and with such emotion it brought a tear to the eye.

Jonah took on the massively demanding title role, Barnum with such ease- making us believe he was the Greatest Showman on Earth- his singing, dancing and circus tricks-an absolute delight.

“There might be a sucker born every minute”, but the entire audience on opening night was a sucker for his charms from beginning to end.

Yes he was every bit the charming circus wheeler and dealer.

This Barnum husband and wife duo worked wonderfully together and a touching onstage chemistry, which gave the show that extra pizzazz.

The cast was a knock out too and gave the audience a true taste of the circus, with ensemble numbers full of colour, energy and

excitement, not to mention undeniable skill. Throughout the show their energy and vitality never dropped, ensuring an

extremely slick delivery of this entertaining show, a credit to the talented and very hard working

director Lauren White. Musical direction was again orchestrated by maestro extraordinaire Kirk Skinner and choreographed by the

talented trio Karleeanne Yaghmoor, Lauren White, Freya Campbell-Walker .

 The show exudes imagination and excitement particularly in the impressive numbers Come Follow

the Band, There’s a Sucker Born Every Minute, Black and White and Join the Circus.

Through the show the audience witnessed the many wonders of the world including, Joice Heth, the oldest woman to ever live

played by Miriam Robinson,  who drew the laughs, General Tom Thumb – Max Duff,who nearly stole the show, ringmaster – Emily Carlson, stunning and confident, she sparkled in her showy sequinned costume, Jenny Lind – Emma Conroy,  sang beautifully as did The Blues Singer – Helena Leonardos.

This heart-warming and uplifting musical was equally enjoyed by

the young and young at heart and was full of great music, circus, magic and comedy; not to mention Barnum’s tight-rope scene.

 The stage is lit up with jugglers, acrobats artists and sometimes it is was difficult to know where to look next.

The musical played to packed houses for four performances with standing ovations at each on the weekend and following the Sunday matinee the cast and crew enjoyed a well deserved after party at a local Italian bistro in Wonthaggi. More photos online www.thegreatsouternstar.com.au

Short URL: /?p=28566

Posted by Tayla Kershaw on May 7 2019. Filed under Arts & Entertainment. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry