With an astute eye to casting coupled with superb production values Adelaide Youth Production’s “Moana Jr” is very good indeed. AYT’s producers Emma Riggs and Kerreane Sarti have the knack of coming up with an excellent product over and over again. Many hundreds of children, mostly bussed in from holiday care programs, obviously appreciated a morning visit to the vast auditorium of the Futures Theatre. Even with some few minutes delay and a pause at the beginning of the show I saw, the audience, many of them quite young, were incredibly well behaved and remained immersed in the story being enacted before them. Under astute stage direction by Bernard Flynn and comprehensive musical direction by Daisy Jury the large cast of some 55 young actors strutted and sang their stuff across the full expanse of the Futures stage. Collectively, for one hour, they successfully entertained the youthful throng before them who remained respectfully engaged in what they came to see. No mean feat that! With such a large cast to wrangle and a number of moving parts to juggle the experience of Stage manager Serena Cann was a real plus, I am sure. Set design was a project for Bernard Flynn and John Flynn with set construction team comprising John Flynn, Paul Campbell and Kristy Fitzgerald. Moana’s outrigger canoe with its solitary sail was an effective and eminently practical key piece within the set construct and it was well “navigated” across the stage throughout the course of the play by a number of able cast “seamen”. So too was the giant puppet Gatemonster; the claws of the giant crab Tamatoa and the statue of the ugly godlike figure of Te Ka which is simply and cleverly transferred back back into the vital and life affirming spirit of Te Fiti once her heart is returned. Most of the above was played out before a projected background of changing sky, sea and tropical Island imagery. It was a visual treat at all times. And that was value added to indeed with wonderful costuming and accompanying headdress gear coordinated by Diane Kilpatrick with her wardrobe team comprising Koroli Magourilos and Lucy Parker. It colourfully projected, as was obviously intended, the unique flavour and feel of Polynesia. 

The plot of “Moana” is simple yet quite engaging. Moana, a designated future leader on the island of Motunui and the daughter of chief Tui wishes to take to the sea. She has a burning desire to seek out the demigod Maui and recover the heart he took from their island spirit Te Fiti. Without it Te Fiti has no powers to keep the sea and land as fertile providers for the people of Motunui. Her parents are reluctant and fear for her safety but a fiercely determined Moana sets off out through the protective reef. She finds Maui, convinces him to turn back and persuades him to help her in her quest to return the heart to its rightful place. In order to return to Motunui they must face a number of challenges, trials and tribulations.

I saw the Lomalagi cast in action! Firstly allow me to pay homage to everybody on stage. In every scene when the company filled the stage there was always lots of “stuff” going on, and everybody was immersed in what they were doing and in what they were contributing to the overall picture. It looked and sounded terrific. Choreography by Kiara Linke was relatively simple but was performed with discipline and exuberance. Specialist dancers looked a million dollars and all performed with an easy elegance. The sea was beautifully depicted by dancers too, particularly with the coordinated wavy movement of filmy blue cloth sometimes enabling a scene change to occur in the background but always adding to the atmosphere and being a focal point of interest for the audience’s attention. And the cast, when required to do so, moved in satisfying unison! The chorus was well schooled and rehearsed by MD Jury and their delivery was crisp and purposeful. 

There were also some notable individual performances in the “Lomalagi” cast. Kiera Flynn who played Moana did so with zest, vigour and great command of character. She also displayed a natural proclivity for great timing. Her vocal range suited the demands of her role and she delivered numbers such as “How Far I’ll Go” with confidence and passion. An impressive performance. Likewise her opposite in the action, Maui, was played in an equally impressive manner by Elliot Purdie. He demonstrated a strident vigour in his character interpretation mixed with the odd aside delivering slices of humour. It was a mature performance enhanced by great vocal delivery, as demonstrated with a hint of glib arrogance in the song “You’re Welcome”  together with his clear communication. I am sure we will see more of these young performers in future productions.

Hot on their collective tail was Yuiko Fujihara as Gramma Tala. She made the role her own injecting it with a clear and gracious manner coupled with good diction and direct delivery of dialogue. She made good use of the stage, as did all the principal performers. It was a fine contribution. The smaller yet telling role of the giant crab Tamatoa was very well handled by Bailey Wilkinson who really revved up the chorus and did a great “sales pitch” in the number “Shiny”. An excellent cameo contribution. Similarly Moana’s parents, Chief Tui of Motunui, Roni Perkinson, and his wife Sina played by Portia Gardiner were key contributors in their supporting roles . Their vocal delivery was hard to fault.

There were many minor roles that all added to the whole, Piper Wilkinson as Pua the pet pig, Nira Hancock as Hei Hei the rooster, and the Chief Ancestors three who provided the odd vocal interlude sweet and true, Paetyn Slater, Autumn-Rose Smith and Patrick Moore. But, at the end of the day, it was the Company as a whole that was responsible for the success of “Moana”. Well done you!