On Thursday evening I had the pleasure to adjudicate BAOS Youth.

This talented and enthusiastic young theatre company performed their latest production, the School Edition of Les Misérables. This is a complex show; however they more than rose to the challenge.

The production team brought a wealth of experience with them. Director Mandie Love kept the pace going throughout with inspired blocking, movement, characterisation and facial expressions. Keeping the staging simple drew attention to the action, singing and emotion.

From the opening ‘chain gang’ scene to the powerful tableux and freeze frames, including the barricade scene and falling/wall of bodies, Eponine’s emotive ‘Death Scene’. Jean Valjean carrying the wounded Marius in the aftermath of the battle, to the visually well portrayed suicide of Javert falling into the abyss. The energy and spontaneity was perfectly maintained.

This was a slick and well cued production delivered with stage business perfect timing, spontaneity and authenticity, as we moved from the comedic, emotional, to the gloomy and the tense, keeping us completely immersed in the action throughout.

The clarity and projection of all the young voices were well measured with excellent modulation and various accents. The cockney delivery and behaviour of The Thenadiers was great fun. Mandie directed with a focus on balance – conflict with peace; activity with stillness; tragedy with comedy.

Meg Gould as Creative Assistant help create some wonderful formations and powerful choreography, especially the dynamic energy of the dance sequences at The Inn and in the brothel. Choreography was well planned and executed superbly on stage.

James Millward as Combat and Physicality Assistant enhanced the battle and combat scenes although more variation and pace in movement and reaction was needed at times during the ‘barricade’ scene, which could have been a little fiercer and alive with more rapid blocking and movement, creating the cacophony of war, noise, confusion and fear. However, I appreciate it is difficult working with such a large cast and expecting them to throw themselves into the fight scenes, after so much energy has already been expelled in such a production as this.

The cast not only possessed the triple threat, they quadrupled it with combat skills, and all this whilst belting out complex number and harmonies, cross-singing, characterisation, and intense and passionate projection! No one can doubt the commitment here!

Will Peters Musical Director/Conductor led the orchestra (Claire Alsop, Felix Sürbe, Steph Evans, Caron De Burgh, Aimee Edmunds, Martin Rogers, Matt Davies, Dave Wheeler, Lu Jeffery, Robin Davies, Ian Evans.)

Les Misérables is a rousing, emotional and pensive musical with a very difficult score, with a constant narrative and dialogue throughout. However under the baton as it were from Will with a talented orchestra, providing a great sound, perfect balance and support for the vocalists. The show was in safe hands musically from the very first epic notes of the overture, to the numbers, “At the End of the Day”, “The People’s Song”, “One Day More”, and “The Café Song”. “The Beggers” was very powerful possessing a sense of shared suffering and call to arms. The voices were redolent at times commanding, then imploring.

Costume Design, Procurement and Props was overseen by Frankie Duddridge and Friends of BAOS, (along with the seamstresses Julie Kingcott, Sarah Fowke, Angie Parker, Marnie Ress), and Hair and Make-up by Robb Norton and Friends of BAOS) made sure the appropriate attire and props reflected and emphasised and captured the period, social standing, class sytem and personality of the characters. With a large cast they certainly had their work cut out and delivered a wonderful array of costumes and props. The passage of time, was shown visibly by the ageing of the lead cast members through hair and make-up (those lucky enough to age).

Production Manager/ Set Design and Construction Alex Simpson along with Stage Crew Lorna Robinson, Steve Leggett, Calin Jones, Toby Foster created and oversaw the simple yet effective multi-level truck – with clever backdrop, raised bridge, staircase, and use of props, effective/atmospheric stage smoke, with period appropriate props allowed the actors to shine. The barricade scene in particular was well presented with the set on wheels as was The Inn.

Lighting (supplied by Spirolux) Lighting Design (Mandie Love) One of the most important elements in this production is lighting, and a lots of planning had gone into this. The moving LEDs and spots swivelled and flooded both stage and audience. The colour scheme evoked changing emotions was clever and atmospheric. The gun battles evoked the rapidity of gunfire well, creating a sense of chaos and fear with an explosive combination spotlight flashes and red floods enhancing the score. The follow spots (Kevin Robinson and Gary Bressington) were spot-on; the lights promptly focussed on the various performers and objects with dramatic effect; such as the stone street cobbles and walls to the gobos in the drains. The backlighting cleverly masked any complex manoeuvres such as Javerts descent into the abyss.

Sound Design (James Hartland) and Sound Engineer (Rys Plaister) was of good quality and every character could be heard clearly, along with a good balance with the live orchestra. The sound also emphasised the rapidly changing locations, mood and atmosphere, from the echoes of the underground tunnels to the Barricade battle. The guns could have been a little louder during the battle scene.

Jack Spencer, as the noble, wronged soul Jean Valjean, portrayed this substantial role with versatility and gave his all throughout, as his character aged. A haunting quality to his voice was very evocative giving a powerful dimension to “Hear my Prayer” and lovely falsetto for “Bring Him Home”. Lovely range to voice and maturity in his role, especially as he aged. This young man displayed such maturity, impeccable vocals with a great range offered a performance well beyond his years.“Who Am I?” was the number that continued to resonate as we left the theatre.

Toby Rees gave a strong performance as student/romantic hero Marius (‘Empty Chairs at Empty Tables’ was another evocative and emotional number that stayed with the audience), and his love interest Cosette played by Olwen Orme Innes brought real emotion to this role, along with a beautiful soprano voice that she made appear effortless. Their performances as the smitten young lovers was heartfelt, realistic and romantic with vocals to match.

Finn Wisby’s powerful and adept stage performance (with a magnetic and menacing stage presence) as the antagonistic, vengeance seeking authoritarian Javert was commanding and convincing. Finn portrayed the tortured souled, blind to all but a desire to see ‘justice’ done. What a voice! sonourous and versatile, evoking such complexity and emotion in ‘Stars’ and ‘javert’s Suicide’. A truly mesmerising and multi-layered performance and such stage presence.

Maddie Lewis as the deplorable innkeeper’s unscrupulous wife Madame Thénardier and one half of a redoubtable devious duo, equalled by Finch Talbot-Ponsonby as her gloriously grotesque other half. The entertaining repartee, comic timing, body language, physical comedy and expressions were pitched just right as were the musical numbers, played note-perfect. “The Inn Keeper’s Song” and “The Beggars” offered a fantastic narrative that was also lively and bawdy. I love the fact that Maddie and Finch made the roles their own!

The tragic struggles of Fantine was sensitively enacted by Clara Thomasset in the first half of the show (her realistic wig that was Fantine’s lovely locks were cruelly hacked off). Her portrayal was authentic as the betrayed unmarried mother with a rich voice displayed in a spine-tingling rendition of “I Dreamed a Dream”.

Special mention to Nancy Ridd who brilliantly portrayed the cheeky young rebel Gavroche with accompanying London accent as streetwise, lovable, and quick-witted. The empathy for this character made Gavroche’s demise even more heart-breaking! What a performance from this incredible youngster! She was deserving of the applause received.

Daisy Widdows delivered a beautifully understated performance as rebellious and feisty yet doomed Éponine. Her powerful vocals, were superb, especially in the emotive and devastating “On My Own” unleashed her wounds and vulnerability as the jilted would-be lover of Marius. Daisy portrayed the depth and complexity of this tragic character beautifully and her death scene was heartbreaking.

Monty Claydon’s Enjolras gave an energetic yet sensitive performance, rousing the ensemble. This scene was well staged, bringing the period alive along with the thoughts of hopes, dreams and aspirations of the dissatisfied students’.

The narrative took place over a long time frame, and the younger versions of certain characters were well played, especially the talented Elsa Thorp as young Cosette who delivered a haunting and moving rendition of “Little Cosette”.

Everyone from the leads to the supporting roles and ensemble (Alesha Humphries, Alice Spencer, Amelia Hall, Ava-Lisa Morne, Bella Salisbury, Coco Walters, Daphne Gauzy, Edward Bishop, Ellie Williams, Emma Newhall, Eren Bragg, Esther Welch, Evie Allchorne, Florence Cheesman, Freddie Rimmer, Gus Claydon, Jack Bantin, Jessica Fowke, Joe Dawe, Leah Matthews, Louisa Morris, Maya Walton-Larner, Megan Hancock, Megan Parker, Rhiana Redshaw, Sam Davies, Sebastian Halford, Sophia Davies, Will Dimery) played a crucial part in the show, with seamless quick-changes, belting out their one liners and creating beautiful harmonies and melodies.

The staging was polished and professional and one of the best youth productions I have seen. The whole large talented cast played way beyond their years with a refined maturity, utilising the stage well.

There were no fewer than 41 children and young people performing on stage at the performance on the 30th May. Behind the scenes there was a hive of activity from the army of friends, parents, helpers and volunteers. The entire cast fully embraced the era, mood, atmosphere and characterisation and deserved the standing ovation.

Many thanks for the hospitality and warm welcome, we felt very looked after, thank you Tina!

Les Misérables School Edition is a specially adapted version of the much-loved musical "Les Misérables," by Alain Boublil and Claude-Michel Schonberg and is tailored for student performers. It maintains the essence and emotional depth of the original but is slightly condensed and modified to suit younger actors.

One thing I’m loving about being a Rep is seeing the actors in the youth groups develop with each show I see and BAOS Youth is a great example of this, all the performances were so strong and I loved seeing your performers tackle different styles of role and witness how their vocals have matured and developed. It was a great evening’s entertainment, you have so much talent in this group. I really loved this production and you shous all be proud of what you achieved.

On arrival there was an open set, with a raised bridge across the back, with a staircase, stage left facing into the stage, and on-stage right, a raised multi-level truck providing extra levels. This truck doubled as the Barricade, which really worked so well. The set looked great, there were moments I thought it possibly could have been used more, a lot of the principal action was set downstage front.

The atmosphere was suitably dark with plenty of haze effect throughout adding to the dramatic effect. The blinders, worked brilliantly for the transformation in and out of the Barricade, but I felt that perhaps they were used a little too much, losing their impact a little. I loved the drain gobo effects which worked brilliantly in that scene.

Sound worked well throughout and was well cued. The balance was generally very good. In the battle scene there were moments when I lost the vocals, but it didn’t lose its impact.

Costumes were fabulous and mostly appropriate and of the period, but please don’t forget the shoes/boots.

In Reviewing the Principal Performances:

Jean Valjean (Jack Spencer) This is a beast of a role, and you managed this so well. It’s difficult for young performers to “age” believably and you did this well. Your vocals were great “Bring Him Home” a highlight.

Javert (Finn Wisby) From your first entrance you fully inhabited this role. You had a great physical presence and you maintained this throughout. You managed to illicit some sympathy during “Javerts Suicide” not easy to do.

Cosette (Olwen Orme Innes) A beautiful Soprano voice, perfect for this role, you sung beautifully.