A spirited cast, thoughtful direction and standout vocals make this Mossley staging of Legally Blonde a feel‑good triumph from start to finish. Ian Cheeseman reviews.
What an uplifting and enjoyable experience watching Oldham based Congress Players at the George Lawton Hall in Mossley, with their version of Legally Blonde; it was fantastic. You could tell this was a labour of love for the whole cast. The joy came through in every performance.
Director Emma Donbavand described her involvement, in the excellent programme, as being, “a lifelong dream of mine. I’ve always seen Elle Woods as something of a spirit character. I once made the bold decision to leave behind a secure career to pursue my first love, only to discover that what I truly fell in love with was the journey itself. Elle’s determination, optimism and refusal to be underestimated felt like the perfect lens through which to tell this story.”
Emma completely gets this wonderful story of female empowerment without needing to be something she wasn’t. Emma’s direction was full of care, thought and empathy. It was a triumph in my eyes.
There has been a lot of criticism of modern story telling for trying to shoehorn women into the leading roles, more traditionally played by men. This show proved that a female doesn’t have to be masculine to be strong. It’s beautiful story about being who you are and sticking to your principals.
The songs are varied and melodic and I particularly enjoyed the performance of “Ireland” by the character Paulette, played by the very talented Francesca Astley. Her voice was outstanding and her characterisation of her Paulette was first class.
The lead performers, Francesca Groves as Elle Woods, the always consistent Nick Ward as Warner plus Jessica Harper, Ellie Birch and Sophie Atherton as the Delta Nus, Elle’s Greek chorus, were faultless. I have to give special mention to Josh Hankey as Emmett, Elle’s ultimate love interest. He had a presence, authority and believability that helped Francesca’s Elle have extra depth. Francesca led the cast with real believability and great singing.
This cast all deserve a mention, because there were no weak links, so I suggest that rather than believe me, go and see it yourself. It’s at the George Lawton Hall in Mossley until Saturday 21st February. You could also check out the film, starring Reese Witherspoon and if you miss Legally Blonde this time around make sure you plan ahead for Gypsy by Congress Players at Playhouse 2 in Shaw from 13th to 18th July, because if this is anything to go by, it’ll be brilliant and quickly sell out.
Oh and the two dogs in the show, Earl as Buster Woods and Minnie as Bruiser Woods deserve a special mention too, and a treat or two! They were well behaved, sweet and deserved a Noda for best animal performances, in my humble opinion!