Harrogate Phoenix Players

The eternal challenge in most musical theatre is to bring alive a conventional structure based around the triumph of true love. In some respects, this certainly applies to High Society; however, this is also a show blessed with snappy, witty dialogue and with music, and especially lyrics, composed by a genius. Cole Porter was completely familiar with the privileged, self-absorbed world being gently satirised in some of his songs while others celebrate the truths of human love and sexuality. A successful contemporary production of High Society needs performers who are right on top of the pace and verve of the dialogue and can convey the range of mood from satire to deep emotion across Porter's songs. Did the Phoenix Players pull it off? For me they certainly did. They achieved their success through excellent ensemble work by all the principals.

All nine principal roles were balanced and performed with strength and verve by a talented cast. Catherine Noland as Tracy exuded a command of the stage from the outset and her rendition of the ambiguities in It's Alright With Me provided one of the musical high­lights of the show. Rob Hastings as Dexter achieved a poignant mixture of debonair man about town punctured by a broken heart which was so nicely conveyed In Just One of Those Things. Sarah Day provided a fine spirited take on the outspoken Dinah while Emily Rockliff and Steve Padfield both gave sustained, expressive performances as the journalists with Who Wants to be a Millionaire providing another musical high spot. David Macdonald as Uncle Willie wonderfully humanised a character who could, so easily, have been one dimensional as did Robin Withey with the angry, perplexed and rejected George. Katherine Doherty and Mark Sowden as Margaret and Seth Lord very effectively conveyed the humanity of frailty and forgiveness.

Skilled direction was evident throughout as scenes often required a number of principal characters to be engaged on the stage simultaneously. Rigorous attention to individual direction of the principals was demonstrated by their consistently expressive involvement in the action. Similar attention had also been given to the integration of the chorus performers into the many ensemble scenes. The Phoenix Players have recognised the potential of this show to entertain a contemporary audience and they have realised that potential very effectively. A most enjoyable evening.

David Crossthwaite

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The Cole Porter Story

Sunday 17th May 2009 at Harrogate Royal Hall: our production of the mini-musical "Red Hot & Cole".
Red Hot & Cole celebrates the life of one of the great songwriting masters of  this century.  The two-act revue traces Cole's career from Indiana to the world stages of New York, London, Paris and Venice, through his marriage, his friendships with the greats of his age and the tragic riding accident that crippled him in mid-career, physically but not artistically.  The show features over 25 Cole Porter standards, including "Night And Day", "I Love Paris", "Anything Goes", "Let's Do It", "Miss Otis Regrets", "Just One Of Those Things", "In The Still Of The Night" and "My Heart Belongs To Daddy".

A scintillating mixture of biography and song, “Red Hot & Cole” celebrates the great American songwriter who brought style, elegance and sophistication to the stages and sound stages of Broadway and Hollywood, delighting the world with his devilishly clever rhymes, fresh and unexpected melodies and sassy, sexy sensibility.   

“Red Hot & Cole” bubbles with songs from classic shows and movies “Anything Goes,” “Kiss Me Kate,” “High Society” and “Can-Can” among others. 

It's a champagne tribute to a glittering age gone by and the man and talent who was Cole Porter.

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"Thank heavens for Phoenix Players’ commitment to quality musicals"
(was the headline of Nina Swift’s review of ‘Gigi’ in the Harrogate Advertiser.)

Harrogate Theatre: presented from Thursday 22nd January to Saturday 24th January 2009
The cast was described as ‘excellent’ with very complimentary comments on the performances of the principals.  Of course, as everyone knows, the success of the show was due to the hard work and enthusiasm of all involved - with indefatigable encouragement and guidance from Mark Edwards (making his debut as director), choreographer Wendy Walker and musical director Oliver Longstaff.  Special mention also to Liz Lancaster and her wonderful backstage team who coped with complicated scene changes, quick costume changes and a daunting number of props with efficient good humour.  The costumes as always were brilliantly organised by Joyce Latty. So there you have it - how to organise and present a quality amateur musical show in just a few sentences.. oh, you also need great enthusiasm, energy and commitment from the whole group and lots of talented people!  As long as we receive praise and encouragement from our audiences - we will keep putting the shows on.

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Something Special

Gala Concert: Saturday 17th May 2008
To celebrate the re-opening of the Royal Hall following its magnificent restoration, Harrogate Phoenix Players were proud to present a Gala Concert on Saturday 17th May 2008,  which featured selections from Showboat, Crazy For You, Evita, Little Shop of Horrors, West Side story, Les Miserables, Company and Bugsy.