The opening night of GMTG’s ‘Our House’ certainly started with a bang! The audience enjoyed two hours of Madness through singing, dancing and acting from an extremely energetic and exuberant cast. The musical follows the journey of Joe Casey and his constant plight to impress his girlfriend Sarah and the wrong decisions he makes along the way. There is a constant battle between ‘Good Joe’ and ‘Bad Joe’ and how his family and friends are affected by the decisions he makes. Combined with many upbeat numbers, the musical as a whole definitely has a feel good vibe.
The production was vibrant, with lighting that set each scene exquisitely and allowed the audience to be fully immersed in the action. The opening song, ‘Our House’, immediately placed massive grins on both of our faces, which stayed put for the whole show. The music for each song was performed live which added to the energetic atmosphere. Ben Farrar did an outstanding job as a musical director, there was not one fault in any of the numbers and the band and performers were completely in sync. As the audience we felt comfortable enough to clap and sing along to this fun and ‘mad’ production. The quality of the acting and singing was superb and each scene and characters were fully believable.
The director Nia Tilley and co-director and choreographer Ellen Howard deserve huge commendations for putting together such a fabulous production! It was evident that a lot of hard work had gone into the show and the chemistry between the cast was apparent on stage; the show would not have been the same without the excited and proud whooping from Nia throughout! Ellen’s choreography was unique and intricate, making the performance much more exciting to watch. The dancers made the advanced choreography look effortless by being completely in sync and constantly with smiles on their faces.
It was as though the character of Joe had been especially written for Tom McCann. The role fitted him like a glove, he connected with the audience throughout, making them laugh, want to sing along, and even cry at parts. Most impressively were his constant quick costume changes, especially one executed in about 25 seconds behind an array of open English flag umbrellas. This left the audience cheering at the surprising little stunt mid song! Tom and Hannah together made a very sweet and endearing duo. Their singing and acting were particularly remarkable and their powerful relationship carried the plot throughout.
As a whole the production exceeded our expectations and we walked out of the hall humming the songs with huge smiles plastered on our faces. It is a fun-filled production that we would recommend to anyone in need of a useful study break or post exam treat. Tickets are available at the door and online at http://www.guildofstudents.com/events/6691/778/ with the show running every day until the 30th of May at 7:30pm in the Debating Hall at the Guild of Students.
