Theatre

The magic of Hills Musical Theatre Company’s Cinderella began as our complimentary programme arrived with a gift voucher for the canteen (and if that isn’t community theatre done right, I don’t know what is).

The set up is cabaret style. You can bring your own snacks and/or purchase from the canteen. We were then shown to our table. I loved the idea of this cabaret style, but in execution it’s a bit tricky. We were seated with others, which is a lovely way to promote the community, but it means you need to be aware of each other and visibility. I recommend you get there early enough to negotiate comfort. I had to move away from the table to properly enjoy act 2.

That small logistical wrinkle aside, this show was fantastic.

The stage itself announces its ambitions immediately. Set design by Hannah Aouchan and Keith Macbeth glitters with fairy-tale intention, and as the ensemble assembles to open the show, lighting design by Max Tibbles and Jeremy Cardew at Latarka bathes the whole scene in something genuinely enchanted. Musical director Gemma Rolph’s orchestra; live, warm, and present, does what only a live pit can do.

Into all of this steps Claire Polczynski as Ella, and she has the voice of an angel. Polczynski grounds this Cinderella in something more than sweetness; there’s a steeliness beneath the warmth, a Cinderella who knows her own worth even when the world around her doesn’t. It sets up the show’s quietly progressive take on the classic.

This version leans into political satire that lands with a particular sting of relevance; a royal wedding deployed to distract from poverty and stifle revolution, an advisor with his own nefarious agenda, a prince naive to the divide between haves and have-nots. Deniz Dogan plays Prince Topher with a commanding presence that makes his ignorance sympathetic rather than infuriating, and Sebastian Barons is a convincing, credible puppet-master pulling the strings behind him. Theo Cuelho’s cameos as Lord Pinkleton are enjoyable, and Lachlan Hopkins brings charisma and genuine earnestness to Jean-Michel, a revolutionary whose eye only strays from the cause long enough to find Stepsister Gabrielle’s. The show’s comedic MVP, however, is Josephine Pinto as Crazy Marie; and then, as the Fairy Godmother, Pinto delivers a solo to rival Disney.

Kortana Blissett as the Stepmother deserves her own paragraph. Impressively terrifying and clearly relishing every moment, Blissett finds the comedy in the menace without ever letting you feel entirely safe. Blissett and Annie Beardsley, playing Charlotte (the other Stepsister) are a fun comedic duo.

And the costuming, by Angela East and Emma Stanton, that surrounds all of this is extraordinary. The magical transformation sequences are achieved with such clever ingenuity that they serve as a reminder that community theatre, with the right hands on deck, can eclipse a big budget entirely.

Emily Taylor’s choreography leans into the classic musical theatre register while giving the ensemble room to be genuinely joyful together. This is a large cast spanning a wide age range, and every performer seems to know exactly why they’re there. The show’s youngest scene-stealer, Mackenzie Scott, is all kinds of adorable and already very much at home on the stage (watch this space).

In the interval, the company president spoke about what Hills Musical Theatre Company means to its community, and it wasn’t hard to believe. The values the show celebrates; kindness, generosity, charity, are clearly embodied by the powers that be. That spirit is woven into every corner of the evening, from the canteen voucher to the curtain call.

Cinderella is a whimsical, joyful, surprisingly current night of musical theatre. We’d have happily risked turning into a pumpkin if it had kept going.

To book tickets to Cinderella, please visit https://www.hillsmtc.com/.

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