Review: Joseph by Whitwell Community Players

It’s not often that I’m asked to present trophies, but at Whitwell Junior Players’ final performance of Joseph, at the Whitwell Community Centre, I was asked to do just that.
Whitwell Junior Players perform Joseph at Whitwell Community Centre from 27th-29th June.Whitwell Junior Players perform Joseph at Whitwell Community Centre from 27th-29th June.
Whitwell Junior Players perform Joseph at Whitwell Community Centre from 27th-29th June.

It is an honour I’ve been given once before there and it was a fairly easy task then to choose one budding junior actor to say well done to.

This time it was virtually impossible.

Directors Janet Astle and Amanda Beamish (with the assistance of Allisa Smith) have a way of nurturing young stage enthusiasts.

Some children love to be soloists, others are confident in small groups and some excel in whole group situations.

This reduced version of the musical Joseph allowed for all types of performance and they totally charmed us all.

The story of Joseph is one of jealously.

Joseph’s father favours him over his other sons because of his gift of interpreting dreams.

His coat of many colours marks him out as special and as such he becomes a target for his brothers who sell him as a slave.

What I loved about this production was the total involvement of the young actor/singers.

At a time of year when schools are cramming in sports days and productions before the close of the academic year these children are adding even more to their busy diaries.

They didn’t look tired. They shone with enthusiasm, and focussed on the audience. The youngest little girl of just five years of age was totally involved too, singing along with all of the songs, joining in with the actions and speaking lines on her own with great concentration.

Other children sang solos or choral numbers and of the seventeen children involved you could have picked any of them out for a trophy for some aspect of their performance.

What did I do? I couldn’t be like Joseph’s father and choose one over another. I just had to present the trophy to them all.

By Wendy Fidoe