A large and committed cast put their all into a spirited and entertaining performance of Chess the Musical for Thursday’s opening of the show at a packed Mosgiel Coronation Hall.
The production team, comprising director Greg MacLeod (who also oversees set and costume design), musical director Bridget Telfer-Milne, choreographer Olivia Larkins, production manager Heidi Hayward, have achieved great things with a talented cast.
Created by Tim Rice and songwriters Benny Andersson and Bjorn Ulvaeus, in the 1980s, Chess the Musical focuses on the love triangle between American grand master Frederick Trumper (Ben Thomas), his second and lover Florence Vassy (Anna Langford) and Russian grand master Anatoly Sergievsky (Max Beal) at the height of the Cold War.
All three are in very fine voice throughout the show, with Beal and Langford’s duet of love song You and I and Thomas’ leadership of the ensemble in hit song One Night in Bangkok among the highlights.
They also work hard alongside fellow principal cast members and the ensemble to tell the story mostly in song — as Chess the Musical has only a small amount of spoken dialogue.
Providing sterling support are fellow principals Jack Archibald as Soviet spymaster Alexander Molokov, Alex Gourdie as his American counterpart Walter de Courcey, Joshua Larkins as The Arbiter, and Sophie Whibley as Sergievsky’s abandoned wife Svetlana.
The 22-strong chorus and dance ensemble are kept very busy throughout the performance, tackling multiple quick changes, and dancing their way through a lot of complex stage business, all while singing strongly.
Providing excellent musical support for the action from the orchestra pit is a 13-member band/orchestra, conducted by Telfer-Milne.
Costumes are wide-ranging in style and evocative of the era, while the set is adaptable to allow many quick scene changes and includes two large, mobile screens to add highlights.
All in all, Musical Theatre Dunedin’s production of Chess the Musical is a complex, high-energy, and entertaining look back at the Cold War and the heyday of international chess. Bravo!
