Gosford Musical Society, now pushing towards its 80th birthday, shows no signs of ageing or slowing down. Pumping out five productions a year, Hunchback of Notre Dame is the final show for the 2024 season, and it’s a strong finish for the company.
The story is classic; Victor Hugo certainly knows how to write an epic that shines a light on love and other flaws of the human condition, whether innocent, romantic, vengeful, or lustful. In theatrical and musicalised form, it’s Romeo and Juliet crossed with Cyrano De Bergerac, with a heavy pour of the Salem Witch Trials.
Despite being a contemporary score from Alan Menken and Stephen Schwartz, with a mixture of ballads, duets, bustling company numbers, and some simply gorgeous cathedral songs, a few of the newer numbers do overstay their welcome, but the classics still ring true.
Jamie McKenzie makes his directorial debut with the production. Drawing inspiration from the show’s original iterations, he and his core creative team, with choreography by Finnian Alexander, Musical Direction by Kimberly Gilbert, deliver a show that, is quite remarkable. Special mention should be made of the Assistant Direction by Daniel Craig and Production Management by Sancia West, such a large-scale project, requires support, guidance, and mentorship – and those two are some of the best.
It’s refreshing to see the company show refinement in the design and focus on a singular vision. Damien Rice’s lighting is lush, Kerrie Fuller, Karen Beggs, Kaia Helle and Kylie Preston costumes are a visual feast, and similarly with McKenzie and Dawn Keft’s set, which seamlessly moves us through the piece.
Gilbert’s orchestra is simply sublime. It’s a treat to see the ‘orchestra lid’ open for this show; it would be a discredit to them if it were closed. After this, Gilbert will be highly sought-after for years as a musical director until she’s snapped up by the leading professional companies, like so many before her. There really is something in the water on the coast; we have such an abundance of brilliantly talented young people.
The jaw-droppingly stunning opening of Act 2 is a perfect example of Gilbert’s work. She, along with seasoned vocal coach Vivienne McLaren, has drawn stunning vocals from the core cast and supporting choir. It’s brilliant to finally see the “pit singers” out of the pit and included in the production’s overall vision and design. They seem to vanish into the scenery when not singing, and that takes incredible focus.
Sean Kelly gave a deeply moving performance as the titular Hunchback, Quasimodo, with the right amount of depth, warmth, and innocence, with vocals to make the rafters ring.
Bryn Watkeys kills it as the hopeless romantic who is willing to risk it all for love. Likewise, Rob Logan is ever the scene-stealer as Clopin.
But the absolute standouts of this production, soaring blisteringly high above, are Erin Hobden and Tynan Fuller as Esmeralda and Claude Frollo, respectively. These two are the soul of the production that binds the many brilliant parts into this lavish whole. Hobden knocks every scene, dance, look, and note out of the park; her performance of “God Help the Outcasts” should have been met with a standing ovation. Similarly, Fuller’s performance in “Hellfire” – I’d happily pay to hear him sing the phone book if he’s looking for a Sydney Fringe idea in 2025. I have no doubt these two will be popping up on professional cast lists before too long.
The company is marvellous, seamlessly transitioning across dozens of roles each, as well as powerfully delivering Alexander’s slick choreography. A special mention must be made of audience favourite Marc Calwell as Saint Aphrodisius; Calwell always brings warmth to everything, and this is no exception.
Every review has a line about opening night hitches – as all shows have them – but companies like GMS get only four nights in the theatre to put on stage what mainstage companies might have a month to achieve. Everything will tighten up, but this is one of the most polished openings from the society that this reviewer has seen in a long time.
A review’s job is to look at the entire piece in front of them, not just to give a company some marketing quotes. The most strikingly strange misstep doesn’t seem to come from within the production itself; it’s the marketing material. Provided to the producers, it strongly implies it’s merely “based on” and “with songs from” the much-loved 90s Disney animated musical film, yet Disney slaps a copyright under the title. Brand recognition would likely strongly bolster ticket sales in such a difficult time for the hip pocket. The film’s Wikipedia page lists the show as a “franchise.” Are Disney shying away from this work, or is it just that merchandising options are limited, so community theatre companies don’t get to say “Disney’s Hunchback”?
This production deserves much bigger audiences in its coming performances. Despite Hugo’s mournful ending to the story, the show will utterly delight theatre-goers.
Go to be moved and to have a beautifully entertaining night in the theatre, but maybe take some tissues.
— Joshua Maxwell
Joshua Maxwell is a nationally respected theatremaker and writer. Having been in theatre for almost two decades, they’ve founded and served as Artistic Director of Jopuka, as well as served on the boards of Riverland Youth Theatre, ASSITEJ Australia, Sydney Theatre Awards, and The National Youth Arts Collective. In 2020 they founded Arts For Climate Action and have been consulting on national arts policy for several years. Their 2021 play Very Happy Children With Bright And Wonderful Futures, inspired by the Black Summer Fires, was nominated for an Australian Writers Guild Award and published by Playlab Theatre, with nearly a dozen upcoming productions across Australia. They’re the recipient of the John Bell Scholarship for Writing. They’re currently the Artistic Director of Red Tree Theatre and will commence their Master’s in Creative Writing in late 2025.
The Hunchback of Notre Dame runs for 2hrs 30 minutes (with 20 min interval) and plays at the Laycock Street Community Theatre through 9 November 2024. Tickets are available through Laycock Street Community Theatre.
Disclosure: The Plus Ones were guests of Gosford Musical Society.
Image credit: Spooning Australia
