OBSERVER: Josephine Wants To Dance
‘Josephine Wants to Dance’ and now so do I. I was extremely fortunate to attend the Monkey Baa Theatre Company’s amazing musical production Josephine Wants To Dance, based on the popular Australian picture book by Jackie French and Bruce Whatley at the perfectly suited intimate setting of the Alexander Theatre Monash University.
This uplifting, funny and engaging show delighted the audience of children, parents and grandparents alike. I attended with a mum, child and grandma, who were most enthralled for an entire 50 minutes.
It was heartwarming to hear children giggling at the appropriate jokes and gasping in awe at the jaw-dropping, vibrant costumes.
I was incredibly impressed with the versatility of the performers who switched from one character to the next, changing their elaborate costumes, accents and various dance styles to depict their roles.
The actors also managed to fit changing sets in between the many costume changes!
The colorful and functional set design lent itself to speedy and efficient changes, complimented by subtle lighting.
I admired the suitably child-friendly, catchy musical numbers that introduced various genres of song and dance to their young audience, and I applaud the sound design and sound operator for the marvelous balance of voice and accompaniment.
A lovely feature of this production is a lesson to be learned – that everyone can have the opportunity to shine if they choose to and work towards their goals.
This production is a charming way to introduce the world of song and dance to the young and I am sure many children left the theatre with the desire to take ballet lessons.
This high-quality Australian production will be touring regional Victorian centres until May 3 and nationally until September.
More information and tickets are available on their website: monkeybaa.com.au
Review by Lucy Nicolson