If you want laugh-out-loud moments, fantastic all-singing, all-dancing numbers and a cast who really put other panto performers in the shade – Sleeping Beauty at the Towngate Theatre, Basildon is a MUST-SEE! … There may be silly humour throughout but it’s the toe-tapping dance numbers, which had the audience singing along, such as a Schools Out Medley (Brick In The Wall/Hit Me Baby One More Time/Schools Out For Summer) which certainly scored top marks in the energetic School Room scene. Tender moments too really encapsulated the fairytale love story including solos sung by Zac Hamilton and Aimee Barrett which were note perfect and full of emotion, including a fantastic rendition of James Arthur’s hit number one single Say You Won’t Let Go.
It had everything you wanted from a panto, the kids loved the interaction with the characters, the adults loved the gags (well some of them), and there was plenty of good singing and dancing… And the music and script is also very modern and packed full of the local references that the audience really appreciated.
This is Simon Fielding’s 10th pantomime for the Towngate and it seems that the years of work are paying off. Sleeping Beauty is running for more performances than last year’s Jack and the Beanstalk and Fielding’s tried and trusted recipe shows no visible signs of waning. The main ingredient being a good script, that’s funny, relevant and integrates familiar routines rather than simply linking them.
Watch the trailer for the new musical I’m working on in Halden, Norway. Den Hvite Dame (The White Lady) premiers 4 August 2016 with book and lyrics by HANNE HAGERUP, music by AASMUND KALDESTAD and additional music by myself!
After numerous trips to Norway for script development and workshops, last week we had a music workshop where the cast got to sing the music from the show for the first time. The workshop was held in Halden, Norway where the show will premier in August.
Den Hvite Dame is a family musical being performed in Norway’s top tourist attraction during August, Fredriksten Festning. It’s based on the legend of The White Lady (Den Hvite Dame), the ghost that reportedly haunts the grounds of the fortress.
I started working on the project last year as musical supervisor with composer Aasmund Kaldestad, writer Hanne Hagerup and director Tomas Glans. The musical is being produced by Marita Rognøy.
My work has involved working on the conception of the musical, developing the musical material with Aasmund and providing the orchestrations and additional music. I am also thrilled to have Jonny Martin on board as Associate Musical Director. Jonny will be opening the show in August.
A few weeks ago we recorded a ‘radio version’ of one the songs with the White Lady herself, Nina Hammarklev. The song has recently been released for promotion in Norway.
We have also done the recordings for an EP to be released next month featuring six of the songs from the show.
