Superstar is state’s best
WONTHAGGI Theatrical Group shone at the Music Theatre Guild of Victoria awards night, winning the prestigious Bruce McBrien Award for the production of the year, Jesus Christ Superstar.
A contingent of some 33 JC Superstar cast, crew and friends attended the gala awards night on Saturday at the
George Wood Performing Arts Centre, Yarra Valley Grammar and was rewarded with eight awards.
These included best direction (Vin Foster Award), Wayne Moloney, settings (Grahame Murphy Award), Tad Hendry, male performer in a leading role (Harold Burrows Award), Tom Green, as Jesus who also collected best first performance in a featured role (Gladys Moncrieff Award), best ensemble performance, design award (Peter Blizzard-Allen Award), Tad Hendry and John Cuttriss for the crucifixion scene, and Wonthaggi’s Bend It Like Broadway won best concert/revue performance.
Talking to The Star on Monday, award winning Mr Moloney said he was just so “overwhelmed”.
For Mr Moloney, it was a dream come true, a production that was two years in the planning. He literally lived, breathed and dreamed about the production and said, “You don’t do it for the awards; you do it for the passion and love of doing it and the recognition is a bonus.”
Mr Moloney was full of praise for the Wonthaggi group, which he said was willing to give new people a go.
“It was a first for me as director and I couldn’t have done it without the great support from Louise Adkins. Together we chose 19 year old first time lead Tom Green for the very demanding role of Jesus,” he said.
“It was daring but it certainly paid off.”
He also praised the great support he has had throughout the year from talented director Colin Mitchell, whom he worked with years ago on Leongatha Lyric Theatre’s Jesus Christ Superstar production.
He said if he could have wished to win any award, it would have been for the best setting won by Tad Hendry and John Cuttriss.
“The thing that knocked out the judges was the Crucifixion scene, mentioned by the judges on the night as a near perfect piece of theatre,” Mr Moloney said.
The hotly contested awards saw some 61 productions around the state judged, and Wonthaggi was up against the final 10 best.
Another highlight on the night for Mr Moloney was when MrGreen was awarded best male performer in a leading role and won the Gladys Moncrieff Award for the best first performance in a featured role.
Mr Moloney said it was a hot field and Mr Green’s award took a few by surprise. He soon silenced any controversy when he blew the audience away with his Gethsemane performance.
“He was awesome,” Mr Moloney said.
“Wonthaggi has developed into a strong and confident company, willing to take risks and always looking to promote new talent.”
Wonthaggi has won three Gladys Moncrieff Awards in the last four years: Elly Poletti as Fräulein Kost in Cabaret and Jay Nelson, as Moonface Martin in Anything Goes.
Another fine performance on the night came from Wonthaggi’s Bend It Like Broadway’s five woman capella group of Elly Poletti, Bron Kalos, Britt Lewis, Sarah-Kate Hanley and Kerryn Morren, that won best concert/revue performance.
Mr Moloney said a performance of Old Man River left the audience spellbound.
Mr Moloney said the award belongs to the whole team who brought Jesus Christ Superstar to the Wonthaggi stage.
Looking ahead, Mr Moloney said he does not have plans to direct another show, but is excited about the line-up of shows to be presented by Wonthaggi in the next few years.
That starts with Pippin in 2015 where Tom Green’s brother Corey Green, an apostle in JC, will take on the lead title role as Pippin.
Mr Moloney said it will be a first time for Corey taking on a lead role, and said he could follow the family tradition and bring home another Gladys Moncrieff Award.
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