High-calibre performance is welcome distraction from show’s theme

THE full-on American musical Rock of Ages has been brought to the Kenton stage by the Reading Operatic Society creative team of Lloyd White (director), Mark Webb (musical director) and Emily Muirden (choreographer), together with a large, loud and energetic cast. The show is peppered with high-octane hits from the Eighties.

The musical is set on Sunset Strip, a place that is a byword for the rock ’n’ roll lifestyle. Small-town girl Sherrie Christian (Eleanor Knight) is drawn there with hopes of stardom and meets aspiring musician Drew Boley (Kieran Jones). Drew tells us that he has been Waiting for a Girl Like You, but the course of true love never runs smoothly.

Knight and Jones, each with a marvellous voice, are very well-matched and sincere as the couple and it’s to the delight of the audience that they get together happily at the end. Hapless bar owner Dennis Dupree (a likeable Kev Harvey) faces trouble when developers threaten the future of the Strip. Hertz and Franzy Klinemann (Charlie Fidler and Jasmine Allen) should be the villains of the piece, but their amusing take on German businesspeople makes the audience warm to them.

City planner Regina (a funny and strident Lauren Hughes) fiercely opposes the clean-up plans for the Strip since, as she reminds everyone, We Built This City “on rock and roll”. Dupree’s Bourbon Room is a magnet for musicians and their entourages. Trent Allen puts in a great performance as the loathsome star, Stacee Jaxx.

We also meet Justice Charlier, proprietor of a racy “gentlemen’s club”, where she persuades Sherrie to join the team of girls; Delun Jones is commanding in the role and has a big voice. Overseeing proceedings is compère Lonny Barnett; Andrew Johnson gives an extraordinary performance as the playful narrator, who instantly forms a good rapport with the audience and questions the writer’s power over what happens to the characters.

At the heart of the musical is the live band. Mark Webb on keyboard conducts guitarists Daniel Bilby, Andrew Smith and Graeme Hollingdale, together with Thomas Smith on drums. Well done to all the production team and special mention should go to Pam Dennis and Daisy Fitzgibbon, since their input on make-up, wigs and hair added so much to the period feel. Credit also to the lighting team, especially for their memorable strobe-lit, slow-motion struggle between the police and the protesters.

Rock of Ages was written 20 years ago and arguably its central theme of showbiz sleaze no longer lands altogether comfortably. However, what draws the crowd to this fast-moving show and sends them home happy is the high-calibre music, singing and dancing from Reading Operatic Society cast members. The rousing finale drew delighted applause from the audience.

Susan Creed