Reviews

Amongst Dolly Parton’s many attributes is the ability to create catchy, toe-tapping songs and this is very obvious in Spotlight Theatre’s current season of 9 to 5.

Based on the 1980 movie of the same name, the stage version opened on Broadway in 2009 and has since been seen in productions around the world.

Credentials is a kind of parable about how the world works.  It tells the story of two young women, one born into poverty, the other into privilege, and how each finds a place in the world.  Chrissie (Kayla Hamill) is a committed paramedic who got her job with fake credentials: she never finished high school and certainly didn’t attend any university.  But how else could she get into the ambulance service?  Sprung by her doctor boss, Stephen (Geoff Paine), she tries to explain herself and pleads with him not to sack her…  She’s from a cou

Welcome to La Cage aux Folles, the hottest nightclub in St Tropez. When the curtain rises, drag queen Zaza (Nathan Skaines) is the star of the show. As the curtain falls, he is Albin, faithful husband to the club's owner Georges (Adam Bartlett). But will Albin have to take on a third role, when their son brings home his fiancee and her conservative family?

High camp Disco looked like it was invented for circus, such is the seamless marriage of the thumping beats and aerial high-jinx in this sparkling production.

The audience is taken on a steep rollercoaster ride of fun that only slows down once, for a musical highlight, which is a haunting acoustic rendition of the Bee Gees hit Stayin Alive.

The rest of the night is pulsating, featuring a mixture of Disco hits from ‘Boogie Wonderland’ to ‘Last Dance’. The template is a succession of short acts, featuring some quirky characters.