CLOC Starts Second Half Century

The Cheltenham Light Opera Company was founded in 1964 with a production of The Pirates of Penzance in a local church hall.  In 2014, fifty years later, and now known as CLOC Musical Theatre, the company staged two musicals with a combined budget of $600,000.

Shows #100 and #101 were 42^nd Street and the Victorian non-professional premiere of Legally Blonde.  42^ndStreetwas a nod to CLOC’s history and even brought back the original director and choreographer from CLOC’s successful 1996 season of the show to remount a stunning revival. Legally Blonde was a look to the future of musical theatre, while continuing the company’s tradition of staging community theatre premieres and producing sets and costumes that are used all over Australia and New Zealand.

Although these two shows were very different in their music, content, setting and target audience, they did have one very important commonality.  They were both HAPPY shows, shows that allowed audiences to leave their lives, cares and worries out in the foyer, and to lose themselves in the joy of toe tapping songs and dances, bright and sparkly costumes and sets and a world of pure entertainment.  Both shows may have had randomly gleeful unrealistic storylines but in fact this element of fantasy and whimsy may have been their strength.

And if that is not enough happiness, CLOC is about to launch into 2015 with show #102 – the return to Melbourne of Mary Poppins, the most famous nanny in the world with her umbrella, her bag of tricks and her magic which she weaves on the Banks family at 17 Cherry Tree Lane.  CLOC’s Grant Alley and his team of technical wizards are already working on recreating the many special effects that feature so famously in the show –magic carpet bags, beds, toys and statues, crazy kitchens and yes, flying too!

After a record-breaking mammoth audition process, Mary Poppins has been cast with the cream of Melbourne musical theatre talent, and with great excitement and anticipation, CLOC is about to launch into a practically perfect magical world where anything is possible if you let it – SPIT SPOT!       

And hot off the presses, CLOC has just announced their second show for 2015 – The Drowsy Chaperone, known as a musical within a comedy, and a comedy within a musical – more lighthearted fantasy, more joy, more happiness and a show that truly lives up to the name ‘musical comedy’.

For more information go to www.cloc.org.auor find us on facebook.

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Community Theatre Seasons 2015