West Side Story, Theatre Life Review
Date: April 2026
Society: Chelmsford Young Generation Amateur Musical Society
Venue: Chelmsford Theatre
Type: Musical
Director: Claire Carr
Musical Director: Bryan Cass
Guest Reviewer: Christine Davidson
Director Claire Carr always manages to produce a show that even if you have seen it before gives us that little bit of extra magic to make the audience believe they have never seen it. With the masterful Bryan Cass as Musical Director this musical was a sure fire hit with the audience with standing ovations at the end.
With a cast of fifty from twelve to eighteen, the maturity of each and every one made us believe in the updated story of Romeo and Juliet. The sets, costumes and fantastic lighting was all a feast for the eyes. In fact this certainly was the best lighting plot for a show I have seen in a long time. I loved the colour combinations of the costumes. Red and purple for the Sharks and blue, yellow and grey for the Jets. This worked very well. Great 50’s wigs too which added to the era it was set in.
The whole cast gave their all. This must have been an exhausting challenge for them as there were so many wonderful choreographed dance routines. My favourite were the girls singing ‘America’. The energy and colour of dancing took my breath away.
All the characters were well cast and not only could they sing but the acting was amazing. Truly a lot of work had gone into this production. Everyone involved should be so proud of their achievements.
The young lovers Maria (Erin Bayley) and Tony (Rocco Watts) showed both naivety and innocence of first love. Both gave excellent strong performances and were very believable as the leading couple.
Gene Gardner as Riff, the leader of the Jets commanded the stage and worked well against Bernardo (Joe Papalie) the opposing gang leader of the Sharks. Great energy from both making you feel for both sides.
There were also good performances from Milo Thorogood as Action, Dylan Wainwright as Chino, Phoenix Wilkins as Anybody’s, Francesca Johnson as Graziella and Leah Blackie as Velma. Olivia Cagle also gave a stunning version of ‘Somewhere’.
One of my favourites was Anita played by Renee Brown. Wow this young lady can sing and dance and really put on a show. I believed in her from the very start. Her energy and star quality shone out.
Interesting take was that they used three adult actors for Doc (David Slater), Lieutenant Shrank (Kieran Bacon) and Officer Krupke (David Everest-Ring). All three gentlemen gave strong performances and added to the cast giving their experience and gravitas to the whole show.
Both ensemble boy gangs were brilliant as were the girls in this production. Hard work had obviously been done for the American and Puerto Rican accents and generally, diction and clarity of words were spot on.
Choreography is so important for the success of any show and Claire Carr used her flair and expertise to make each dance a sight for the eyes. Immaculate timing by each and every young actor. The blocking of each number was extraordinary considering just how many were on stage.
Chelmsford Young Gen produce such wonderful shows and I look forward to seeing more extraordinary talent as the years go on. Congratulations to you all.
West Side Story, Theatre Life Review
Date: April 2026
Society: Chelmsford Young Generation Amateur Musical Society
Venue: Chelmsford Theatre
Type: Musical
Director: Claire Carr
Musical Director: Bryan Cass
Guest Reviewer: Christine Davidson
Director Claire Carr always manages to produce a show that even if you have seen it before gives us that little bit of extra magic to make the audience believe they have never seen it. With the masterful Bryan Cass as Musical Director this musical was a sure fire hit with the audience with standing ovations at the end.
With a cast of fifty from twelve to eighteen, the maturity of each and every one made us believe in the updated story of Romeo and Juliet. The sets, costumes and fantastic lighting was all a feast for the eyes. In fact this certainly was the best lighting plot for a show I have seen in a long time. I loved the colour combinations of the costumes. Red and purple for the Sharks and blue, yellow and grey for the Jets. This worked very well. Great 50’s wigs too which added to the era it was set in.
The whole cast gave their all. This must have been an exhausting challenge for them as there were so many wonderful choreographed dance routines. My favourite were the girls singing ‘America’. The energy and colour of dancing took my breath away.
All the characters were well cast and not only could they sing but the acting was amazing. Truly a lot of work had gone into this production. Everyone involved should be so proud of their achievements.
The young lovers Maria (Erin Bayley) and Tony (Rocco Watts) showed both naivety and innocence of first love. Both gave excellent strong performances and were very believable as the leading couple.
Gene Gardner as Riff, the leader of the Jets commanded the stage and worked well against Bernardo (Joe Papalie) the opposing gang leader of the Sharks. Great energy from both making you feel for both sides.
There were also good performances from Milo Thorogood as Action, Dylan Wainwright as Chino, Phoenix Wilkins as Anybody’s, Francesca Johnson as Graziella and Leah Blackie as Velma. Olivia Cagle also gave a stunning version of ‘Somewhere’.
One of my favourites was Anita played by Renee Brown. Wow this young lady can sing and dance and really put on a show. I believed in her from the very start. Her energy and star quality shone out.
Interesting take was that they used three adult actors for Doc (David Slater), Lieutenant Shrank (Kieran Bacon) and Officer Krupke (David Everest-Ring). All three gentlemen gave strong performances and added to the cast giving their experience and gravitas to the whole show.
Both ensemble boy gangs were brilliant as were the girls in this production. Hard work had obviously been done for the American and Puerto Rican accents and generally, diction and clarity of words were spot on.
Choreography is so important for the success of any show and Claire Carr used her flair and expertise to make each dance a sight for the eyes. Immaculate timing by each and every young actor. The blocking of each number was extraordinary considering just how many were on stage.
Chelmsford Young Gen produce such wonderful shows and I look forward to seeing more extraordinary talent as the years go on. Congratulations to you all.
