The Playhouse Theatre, Whitstable
February 23rd-25th ‘06

Drama coach Anne-Marie Streets, Vocal coach Samantha Roberton,
Choreographer and Artistic Director, Sophie Guariglia.

With Joe Robbins as Zach, Aimee Gray as Cassie, Amy Wiggins as Diana
and Edward Moloney as Mark

Review: Whitstable Times...A Collective Sensation!
In the late 1970’s the hit Broadway musical ‘A Chorus Line’ took the West End by storm. The story of a group of hopefuls auditioning for the chorus parts of a Broadway musical was an instant hit with the British public, and I was one of the thousands who enjoyed the show at Drury Lane.

Since then it has been quite hard to locate amateur productions of this spellbinding show – possibly because it requires an extremely high standard of dance, singing and acting from a cast that must be predominantly young.


So lucky Whitstable audiences who got to see the production, in the last week of February, by Phoenix Performing Arts , as this was a rare chance to see a wonderful musical performed to an extremely high standard.


The cast are on stage for the majority of the show – and it would be easy to notice the odd lapse of attention among the young cast – however the whole performance was so polished and the pace of the action so slick that you never once doubted that these were indeed, hopefuls vying for that coveted Broadway place.

From a Performing Arts school you would expect a high standard in all the creative arts, and this show evidenced some really promising singers, dancers and actors – and many of the youngsters could do all 3. It is difficult to single out individuals in what was such a fine ensemble piece, however both Aimee Gray (as Cassie) and Amy Wiggins (as Diana) displayed superb vocal skills as they sang and danced their solo numbers.

Some wonderful comic timing was evident in Jodie Bradley’s number in praise of cosmetic surgery (‘tits and ass’) and also in Edward Molony’s monologue where he explains to the others his difficulties with early adolescence. One of the most haunting songs (‘At the Ballet’) that deals with incomplete childhoods was captured beautifully by Alex Harvey, Georgia Bullen and Francesca Guest, dramatically lit and very well supported by the other dancers. Joe Robbins was an authoritative Zach, the director who remorselessly probes the individual lives of the dancers, and both he and Katie Snaydon (who played the choreographer) maintained American accents that never faltered.

The choreography of the show was inspired, and though we have come to expect the high standard that Sophie Guariglia invariably delivers, the numbers involving 30 or more on the stage were a real achievement; at the final can-can to ‘One Singular Sensation’ many of the audience were on their feet.
The energy and sheer passion for performing came across loud and clear from these young players, and the mix of comedy with pathos was handled with great maturity.

I was somewhat sceptical before the show began as to whether any amateur cast, especially one comprising chiefly of teenagers, could pull this one off, but they did better than that. Congratulations.