The Full Monty - Bilston Operatic Company - Wolverhampton Grand

The Full Monty went “all the way” to provide an excellent night’s entertainment with lots of laughs, moments of real poignancy and a spectacular ending which gave the audience more than they were banking on!
Despite some first-night sound issues, Bilston Operatic Company coped well with what I think is a very tricky musical score to provide some excellent moments of musical theatre.  There was an array of talent within the company with all performers totally throwing themselves into their characters, whether they were principal or chorus roles.
Dominic Smith (Jerry) led the cast with a confident and enthusiastic performance, demonstrating excellent vocal skills.  His relationship with his on-stage son Nathan, played confidently by Owen White, was believable and showed a real pathos at times. Amy Frost played Jerry’s wife Pam with a passion, giving an excellent performance.
Joseph James (Dave) provided some excellent moments of comedy but was also able to show the character’s insecurities to give a really rounded performance with which many of the men in the audience could relate to!  Laura Canadine (Georgie) was a perfect partner for Dave and really showed her character’s love for her husband, despite their problems.
Joy Brown and Mike James gave strong performances as Vicky and Harold, both showing great vocal skill and excellent characterisations.  Patison Harrigan gave a great performance as Noah (aka Horse!) demonstrating excellent comic timing and driving the audience wild in his first number!
Stephen Burton-Pye gave an excellent performance, demonstrating excellent comedy-timing alongside some real pathos and emotion when his character, Malcolm, lost him mum.  The funeral scene was a really poignant moment and one in which both Malcolm and Ethan (Jake Winwood) gave tear-jerking performances, showing their love for each other.  There were also some really sassy performances from members of the ensemble, particularly Amy Evans and Laura Leo!
A wonderful pit orchestra, under the baton of Musical Director Dan Tomkinson, accompanied the singers flawlessly and adapted to problems of timing with total professionalism! 
The Full Monty is a show that Director Laura Canadine and all at Bilston Operatic Company should be proud of.  A slick, professional-standard production with excellent use of the stage, an interesting set and a cast full of enthusiasm! The Full Monty runs at The Wolverhampton Grand Theatre until Saturday 10th November.