West Side Story

Lumina Theatre Co is a relatively new company based at Aquinas College in Ringwood, and this was their second production. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but what I got was a lot of youthful energy from the mainly young cast, and a lot of pathos, as the drama was fully realised.

Sets were minimal, with a cyclone fence and walkway at the back and various pieces of furniture moved on and off as appropriate. This worked well because of the excellent lighting.

With two opposing gangs, there was a large male chorus. Although not all had dance training, the choreography was tight and exciting. The fight sequences were well realised, the dream sequence in “Somewhere” was clever and the Jets presented a frenetic and very funny “Dear Officer Krupke”.

Jessica La Mari was a touching Maria who sang beautifully. There was real chemistry between her and her Tony, Matthew Frampton, who easily negotiated the fearsome tessitura. Perri Espinoza was a feisty Anita with a strong singing voice.

Stewart Hawkey and Anjan Karnepati were strong as Riff and Bernardo, and all members of the gangs presented clearly defined characters. Apart from a few muffed notes in the overture, the band played well and the sound was good.

But it was the drama of the piece which got to the audience as they really felt for the characters involved in this tragedy.

Well worth a look.

Graham Ford