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The Upstage Production Company once again took to the stage in the first week of December 2009 for their annual whole College production. This year saw the 1960s set musical Sweet Charity, famous for numbers like Big Spender and The Rhythm of Life. The production was a massive success and saw 51 all-singing, all-dancing and all-acting cast members, 12 crew, 15 band members and various front of house volunteers playing to sell-out audiences over four nights. Three costume changes, a three-level set design and 18 musical numbers turned the Performing Arts Centre into 1966 New York.

 

Sweet Charity tells the bittersweet story of Charity, the dancehall hostess with a heart of gold and her unsuccessful attempts to find love. The action switched from the Fandango ballroom, the sleazy nightclub where Charity and the girls dance with men for money, to the glitzy Pompeii Nightclub, home to various movie stars and starlets. The cast, inspired by Kim Owen’s brilliant choreography, effortlessly brought to life the key musical numbers of the show, with the epic 60s hippie gospel groove of Rhythm of Life being a clear crowd favourite. Emily Wood gave us a stupendous Charity, mixing just the right levels of innocence and hope, and Laura Walford and Kate Corfield, as the world weary dancers Nickie and Helene, provided song and dance moments that would not have looked out of place in a West End theatre. Adam Rogoff’s Daddy Brubeck, leader of the Rhythm of Life Church, was a great scene-stealing moment and his sidekicks Samai Chichester and Luke Thomas brought great comedy to the largest number in the show. But, to pick out individuals in a production that clearly was a whole cast success is perhaps unfair. This is the 21^st Upstage production for Hereford Sixth Form college since they reformed in 2001 and it was clear from every night that audiences are keenly looking forward to the next one.