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Review : A Liver Bird Sang - Opening Night

Posted by Stephen

Wendy and I attended the opening night of A Liver Bird Sang this evening.

This operatic production, funded on a shoe-string because Capital of Culture wouldn’t support it, was a true Liverpool musical production.

The cast all performed for free, and some of them, like the magnificent Nick Hardy, and highly talented Jane Hamlet, Julie Davitt and Valerie Watts must surely have been professionals from time to time.

It is the story of the revival of a Liverpool night club - the Scouse ‘Ouse, and a love story between Ella McCabe, cabaret singer in the club and Matt Lightfoot, who wants to buy the club. The whole set against a backdrop of class differences and the striving of the working classes of Old Swan to achieve through education.

The music is by Schubert, arranged beautifully by Geoff Lavelle, with lyrics by John Dixon.

The opening song and regular refrain “The City passes by” was stunning, although there were so many actors performing in this busy city scene that it was hard to catch all of the action at the same time. We got used to the bustle in each scene though and it allowed for some wonderful pastiches and bursts of comic genius from the young Ashley Guidera in terrific form as the nightclub bouncer.

Source : Louise Baldock
Author : Louise Baldock
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Posted in: Musical, Opera, Review Comments(0) April 2008