I have always believed in playing to your strengths, don’t try and succeed where you know you are going to fail, rather chase success and along the way push yourself to do more. When it comes to my stagecraft, I know that success will not be found in dancing. I have two left feet facing the wrong direction; because of this, good dancers are always so entertaining. I literally could not conceive how they make their bodies do that and don’t look like a lumbering thing. Singin’ in the Rain is a classic musical made famous by some numbers, and it is known for being a musical favoured by dancers because of how engaging and challenging it can be. The Rehearsal Room and High Cow Creatives production continues the long tradition of this show being a vehicle for quality performers to shine.
I have seen Singin’ in the Rain several times and I think that this is a hard show to do. Some beats must be hit, scenes that are so iconic they do not crave or even ask for reinvention, which begs the question what does a director have to bring? The answer found by Brendan Cascarino and his team is inventiveness and creativity. Cascarino pulls double duty as director and choreographer and I am impressed by this to the highest degree. Both jobs require so much of you and in a show like this, with so many moving pieces I don’t know many people that would want to do helm so much by yourself. While there are some moments where the choreography or direction could have been tighter, it is clear that Cascarino is challenging his cast, without ever overextending them. He has a nice clean aesthetic that he has managed, working with his production crew, executed successfully. The highlight of this show for the show for me was the actual rain effect on stage. The end of act one is a highlight as it was so fun, and immersive if you are sitting in the front rows’ but don’t worry, ponchos are provided. A key member of this team is Jessica Green, who as vocal coach has done an excellent job in making sure all of the harmonies are being hit and the sound is not being lost in amongst the dancing.
This show has a large ensemble whose job is to help give energy and create the hustle and bustle of golden age Hollywood which helps tell the love story of Don Lockwood - Played by Chris Brennan and Kathy Seldon - Played by Kristiel Carlile. Brennan is charming and talented as Lockwood, a role that requires charisma to flow from you otherwise things can read as creepy very quickly; a product of its time, Lockwood’s advances on Cathy only work if the leads have a good rapport. Brennan is confident and self-assured while Carlise does an excellent job of being coy while falling for Lockwood’s shtick. Don and Cathy are the stars of the show, but if we are being honest, the show-stealing roles of Cosmo and Lina. Don and Cathy are earnest and have some great scenes – The aforementioned Act One finale, in which Brennan is having the time of his life is one example, however, Brad Roe’s Cosmo kills in the iconic “Make ‘em Laugh” and his skill as a tap dancer being utilised numerous times in the production. Alannah Carter as Lina gets my favourite number, “What’s Wrong with Me?”, which to answer, Nothing, nothing is wrong with Carter's performance. Roe and Carter get to have so much fun with these big and bold personalities and have such a wonderful rapport with everyone on stage.
Opening night is never without issues, microphones will be a forever problem in community theatre. With that being said, the team behind The Rehearsal Room and High Cow’s Signin’ in the Rain have put together an engaging and entertaining night out. I recommend this show to anyone who has had trouble speaking into a microphone because you can’t make love to a bush.
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