This production had dual casts in most principal roles. In the interest of fairness to all, TASA reviewed both casts. David Smith reviewed the Rock cast and Allison Thomas reviewed the Roll cast.
Rock Cast
Scotch College maintained its high standard of stage musicals with this energetic and high voltage production. Choosing the oldest extant purpose-built theatre on the Australian mainland may not at first seem the obvious choice of venue for a rock musical, but it served the purpose admirably. From the time the audience first made our way through the smoke haze to our seats until the imaginative curtain calls, the cast and band carried us along with great verve.
It’s a good choice for a youth company. The characters – students, teachers and parents – are recognisable and readily characterised, while the Andrew Lloyd Webber and Glenn Slater music and lyrics are pertinent and pointed. Further, there is the central theme of a widely accepted universal truth: Be true to yourself.
The theatre’s interior is suitably stark, and the set was appropriately simple yet bold. It was chiefly reliant on two large flats on ‘trucks’, efficiently moved around to establish a variety of scenes. That, and the roadie cases – well integrated into the action – contributed to the impact, and provided higher levels for upstage performers when required.
Co-Directors Stephanie Thompson and Melissa Sheldon cast the play particularly well to make the most of the characters. Stehanie Thompson also choreographed the production. Her design of the overall cast movement, along with the wise use of the exceptional troupe of elite dancers, produced a vibrant, insistent drive to the action.
Asher Gordon stamped his authority on the role of Dewey from the outset. He was a force, bouncing around the stage with enormous energy, drawing the rest of the players with him, especially, of course, those playing his students. He was particularly effective in winning over his class to join him in the highly unorthodox quest to take part in a Battle of the Bands, rather than do academic work. Through his incessant energy, he even convinced the audience that his falsely assumed role as a teacher in the elite Horace Green school was not even slightly preposterous.
In addition to carrying that heavy acting load, Asher sang with strength and accuracy, bringing intent and purpose to all his songs.
Zara Windle was ideal as Rosalie Mullins, the school principal. She had a controlled, stern presence for the most part, and contrasted that with a convincingly abandoned display when she eventually let her hair down. She was a splendid foil to Dewey.
The main members of Dewey’s class were wonderfully drawn characters. Emma Venus was very strong as the responsible ‘goody’, Summer. Elliott Purdie as Zack and Harry Geary and Lawrence were convincing in their adolescent awkwardness – and then overcoming it. Grace Pannell as Tomika, Isabella Buley as Billie and William Jarvis as Frankie all had some telling moments. Tomika’s emergence from her paralysing shyness was a definitive moment, and well handled.
Georgia Sykes and Flynn Doyle played Dewey’s friends, Patty and Ned, with conviction. Flynn did well, with rather few opportunities, to illustrate the embarrassment (and absurdity) of the musical’s initial premise in which Dewey impersonates Ned as a teacher to get money to pay the rent he owes his friends.
As an ensemble performance, the musical worked very well. The big songs were well coordinated and exciting to see and hear. Mt. Rock, If Only You Would Listen, Stick It To The Man and of course, the title song, were real highlights.
As a rock musical, this production relies heavily on the band. MD and conductor Wesley Brice and his energetic, yet tightly accurate, band were splendid. They had the regular combination of keyboards, guitars and drums and while they necessarily played loudly for most of the show, they were musically sound and supported the singers well, without drowning their voices. That is a notable achievement.
This production was entertaining, clearly focussed and full of life: just the thing to warm us up on a winter’s night.
Roll Cast
Asher Gordon played the lead of Dewey Finn in both casts with great energy. A very good performer, his character started seemingly unconfident and grew as the story developed.
Rosalie Mullins, the Head Mistress of Horace Green elite school, was played by Molly Rowe. She had a strong voice and excellent dramatic acting, convincing us of the controlling nature of her position, until she let her guard down and tuned into her passion for music.
Maximillian Brammy ably played Ned Schneebly, Dewey’s best friend, flatmate and wanna-be rockstar, a puppet of Patty. Lucy Stirling, as Patty, Ned’s girlfriend and Dewey’s flatmate, was exasperatingly real in her bossy, manipulative characterisation.
Then we have the A school students and School of Rock Band members. Benji Marks as Zack, the guitarist composer, played his part very well from shy and awkward to ace guitarist.
Jasper Darwent, as Summer the organizer and manager, acted and sang very well.
The one that really shone was Georgia Polischko as Tomika, who was always in character as the shy girl until she sang, when she had the most beautiful strong voice in her emotional rendition of “Amazing Grace”. It just transformed her personality and her character. Well done Georgia.
Charles Poland played Lawrence, the geeky keyboard player, as well as the analytical science teacher Gabe Brown, both good performances.
We really loved Grace Brumby who played Shonelle and Poppy Warren as Marcy, the dimpled Backup Singers who had excellent expression, very good voices and their choreography was great too.
Speaking of choreography, the six dancers in the Elite Dance Troupe (Poppy Birkett, Chloe Hill, Sienna Retsas, Stevie Schwarz, Charlotte Triglau and Chloe Vounasis), excelled in their synchronized dancing, their rebellious attitudes and stylish but grungy costumes.
The two policemen, Jonty and Joshua Kirsten, looked and acted like Mr. Anderson in “The Matrix” and brought in a bit of comic relief.
