Broadway Off-Broadway - 9 out of 10
Emma Kavanagh
TICKETS: End of Season
Broadway Off-Broadway return to the Adelaide Fringe is a
celebration of musical theatre that showcases not only established town bred in
South Australia, but also upcoming talent through our many youth theatre
groups, and tertiary education. The hour is filled with powerhouse vocals from
producer, director and lead vocalist Emma Kavanagh and her cast: Madison Green,
Jason Bensen, Maddie Apacible, Jayden Prelc, and understudy Lachlan Nash.
Led by Choreographer Apacible, who is phenomenal in her won
light, we are privileged to witness a number of dance routines throughout,
including some very well polished tap routines (Step in Time anyone?), a small routine from A Chorus Line, and a
fragment from the famous opening number in West Side Story.
The live band, featuring David Goodwin on Keys, Steve Staben
on Drums and Declan Horan on Bass bring decades of industry experience to
accompany not only the cast, but the ensemble performances at the end.
Widely appreciated by audiences, over-played, saturated musical
numbers like Let It Go and Defying Gravity were suitably replaced
in the set list with Into the Unknown, In Summer and What Is This Feeling?.
Other musical numbers include Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious (Mary
Poppins), Good Morning (Singin in the Rain), Memory (CATS), and Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again (Phantom of the Opera) providing a range of songs that are
well-recognised, but not always the #1 you think of when someone mentions a
particular musical.
As we reach the final moments of the hour, we are introduced
to the Ensemble: Janae Ho, Darcie Yelland (both whom are understudies, along
with Lachlan Nash, who stepped in for Josh Spiniello), Teagan Garvey,
Charlize Horbelt, Coco Portolesi, Corey Major, Juliette Keir, Kate Wooding,
Charlie Miller, Yasmin Fitzgerald, Brooke Washusen, Brooke Stevens, Imogeone
Mons, Matty Turner, Rosie Barani, Tennille Thorsen. The list continues with the
children of Adelaide that are very much the next generation of Adelaide
Community Theatre: Isla Bahrami, Ivy Tunnah, Estelle Kouzapa, Maddie Scheel,
and Indie Tunnah!
With such a large ensemble, it’s no surprise that the final numbers
You’ll Be Found (Dear Evan Hansen), and One Day More (Les Misérables)
are emotional crowd pleasers that would move even the toughest of souls. As
Kavanagh further tweaks this crowd favourite of a show, perhaps there might be
space for such an ensemble to be featured further.
In short, Broadway Off-Broadway is a
crowd-pleasing, beautifully performed Fringe showcase that feels both
celebratory and proudly local. Emma Kavanagh has assembled a production that
knows exactly what it is: a glossy, generous, feel-good salute to musical
theatre, delivered with genuine skill and plenty of heart.
- Andrew Broadbent
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