Students (tick), Talent (tick), Brilliant Show (BOOM!)

I had the rare opportunity of seeing tick, tick...BOOM! yesterday at Lichfield Garrick Studio, presented by South Staffordshire College Performing Arts students. A rather compact studio, it was hard to imagine Jonathan Larson's musical coming to life in such a space, but it did!

Sitting, watching the BTEC Performing Arts students felt, in a way, rewarding. It was as if I'd had the opportunity to look through a window into the future and watch the emerging talent in the Midlands. 

At only 17 years old, Elliot Lolley took the leading role of Jon, a wannabe composer, with a dream that feels unachievable. Lolley played the part with conviction and there was a particularly touching moment when he performed Why? He also brought great humour to the role and with support from Lee Fisher (Michael) and Alex Littlehales (Susan), No More and Therapy were two brilliant duets, respectively. The former including a rather hilarious moment with a dishwasher...

A stand-out performance of the night came from Paige Thompson, playing Karessa. Her rendition of Come To Your Senses, a pivotal moment in the play where Jon's future as a composer hangs in the balance, had the audience erupt into applause at the end. Also, a special mention to Georgia-Kate Abnett whose vocals stood out in Sugar. 

Only having one night to get this show right was a daunting challenge that the entire company handled brilliant. There may have been some little hiccups as set was brought on and off, but it didn't even matter, because it was covered well by the performers.

The closing scene was incredibly poignant, which highlighted the beautiful direction from Laurie Asher and musical direction from Mark Bayliss. 

There is no doubt that this production was filled with promising performances and it reinforces the need for people to come along and support the talent of tomorrow.

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