Petersfield Festival Hall – until 22nd February 2025
Reviewed by Lucy Hitchcock
4****
Stage One Youth Theatre invite you to cut loose and kick off your Sunday shoes with a performance of Footloose this half term!
This incredibly talented cast of performers have hit the nail on the head of this show. we follow Ren (Arthur Westmorland) as he navigates a move to Bomont, a town with officials who have outlawed dancing following a car crash-headed up by Reverend Shaw (Joshua Witt). Together with Rev.Shaw’s daughter-who likes to break the rules-Ariel (Emma Moignard) Ren manages to persuade the officials to look within themselves and the town finally gets to see the beauty of dance!
This show is a triumph, the talent and energy this group had was infectious-I was engrossed with every scene as they sang, danced and acted perfectly. The vocals from Westmoreland and Witt were astounding, I found it hard to believe these are young people-they had the gravitas and stage presence of professionals! Caitlin Biddlecombe as Reverend Shaws wife Vi was incredible. Her rendition of ‘Can you find it in your heart?’ was breathtaking-she told the story beautifully with such a tender tone that nearly had me in tears. Another stand out was Ella Burgos as Rusty, along with her crew Jessica, Urleen and Wendy-Jo (Tori Clark, Tayla Fallon, Lucy Mengham). This quartet were fabulous, with some really difficult harmonies executed with ease and in perfect pitch. Burgos is definitely one to watch-I am so excited to see where she goes, she is superb at what she does.
It was hard to find anything I would change with this production, it was truly brilliant. My one note, is I would have loved to see the cast slow their dialogue a little and really relish in their characters, savouring the moments on stage. There were a few lighting issues, with some of the cast not being fully illuminated during their solos-but I don’t believe this caused too much of a problem for the overall production.
This is a perfect way to spend your half term, enjoy the vocals, tap your toes….everybody, Footloose!!