In Oxford
Stagecoach Theatre Arts
Description
Stagecoach is a part time Theatre Arts School providing singing, dance and drama classes for children aged 4-18 years with centres in Headington and North Oxford.
Students gain experience and training in all aspects of theatre while having a lot of fun! Term time classes on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays.
For the right mix of learning and performance opportunities, call for any remaining places for the new term! And don’t forget to read the reviews of our showcase performances!
Contact
- Website http://www.stagecoach.co.uk
- Phone 20219 278600
- Person Maya Sprigg - Principal
- Address The Courthouse, Elm Grove, Walton on Thames, KT12 1LZ
Matthew Wright
• 25th January 2021You’ve probably read about Legally Blonde in the gossip columns recently, following the trials and tribulations of its West End star, Sheridan Smith. I wonder what she’d make of having to cast, rehearse, and perform a two hour play in only six days like the 13-19 year old students from Stagecoach Theatre Arts Oxford?
To set the scene, Legally Blonde is a musical about lawyers, with the twist that the central character, Elle Woods, is better known for her love of fashion and all things pink rather than a deep-seated interest in the law. However, through the application of common sense and approachability, Elle flourishes at Harvard and goes on to…..well, let’s not give too much away.
Beatrice Norris (Elle) and Ben Ashton (Callaghan – a fearsome law professor) were absolutely compelling in the lead roles, displaying a range of acting, singing, and dancing abilities worthy of a West End stage. They were ably supported by Elle’s mentor, Emmett (Ethan Sarphie) and her confidante Paulette (Lisa Baldacino) who both performed taxing solos amidst a flurry of onstage activity, with the action moving from seamlessly from courtroom, to hair salon to a fitness video…..I kid you not!
The costumes and choreography were superb – 6 days, I remind you, 6 days! – as was the lighting, stage design, and musical accompaniment…. in short, everything you’d expect from a professional theatre production. To add to the achievement, a large contingent of the cast was drawn from an exchange programme with Stagecoach Malta, for whom English is not even their first language. It says a lot about their acting prowess that it was hard to identify them on stage….although I have a sneaking suspicion that the dancing Irish leprechaun sported more of a tan than is customary in the Emerald Isle.
Stagecoach has been part of the education and youth theatre scene in Oxford for the past 25 years, with two new centres set to open in September 2021 – in Botley and Kidlington. As a measure of its success, Stagecoach’s students regularly appear on tv, film, and stage, both locally and nationally…which shouldn’t come as much of a surprise after such an accomplished production.
Perhaps the last word should go the sign-off in the evening’s programme: “Congratulations to all our cast – British, Maltese, and canine!”
(Spoiler alert – sorry, I forgot to mention Jessie, who played the part of Paulette’s estranged pet!)