On Tuesday evening, 12th December 2023, I was privileged enough to get to see another Cowes Enterprise College production and what a treat it was, especially after their IW Theatre Awards commendations for last year’s wonderful Treasure Island.
As always you can tell that there is a wealth of passion and support of the students from within the Arts faculty at Cowes which brings out the best in all of the students in this performance, the hard work of Director Elizabeth Stannard and props, Costume and Set from Ashley Hetherington, Casey Egerton, Ann Wright, Helen Cater and Sean and the technical team led by Holly Downer with students Jack L and Eleanor C did an outstanding job of immersing the audience in the world of Shakespeare’s enchanting play.
The set is simple but effective, and works brilliantly as a canvas for the abstract projections used to illustrate the story, pair this with striking sound design and you’re in for a treat- Blur’s Parklife was not on my bingo card for this evening, and neither was Snoop Dogg, but believe me when I say I loved every second of it, and it did not feel forced at all.
The opening sequence did a wonderful job of setting the scene and with a beautifully choreographed piece of physical theatre, it really did create an atmosphere and the rustling of the ponchos that were worn by the cast really sounded like a storm, either a very genius costuming choice, or a happy accident, but either way, it really felt like you were in the epicentre of the great Tempest.
Ann K delivered a powerful performance as Alonso, which kept high energy and strong expressive characterisation throughout. Alongside Ann was Stephanie F who played Gonzalo with confidence and excelled in both dramatic and comedic moments.
Isobel F and Bella E had the perfect partnership as Antonio and Sebastian respectively, they interacted with each other well and had a real and enjoyable chemistry.
Gabriel J and Honour E supported these characters in their roles as Courtiers and did a good job, I hope to see more of these two in future productions as I believe they have the potential to take on larger roles.
This production chose to portray Ariel as four different spirits that explore the magic of the Island, this was a nice touch which gave an ethereal feel to the performance. Emily B-M, Emma H, Tallulah M and Maia T worked well together to create an elegant, airy and delicate Ariel, and had moments of great movement which, when added to their flowy costumes, created a slight breeze as they entered and exited the space, which made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up on end and felt all encompassing, a really nice effect, especially for those sat by the entrances.
The monster of the Island was also a split Role, and the three performers all brought a different energy to Caliban, showing the different facets of the character, which I thought was a clever twist. Ruby M brought a passion and intensity to the role and gave a particularly strong and absorbing performance, whilst Norman M gave the creature a playful quality with inspired physicality and added a different, other-worldly energy to the character and then Sam L, one of my favourite performers in last year’s ’Treasure Island’, was once again very watchable and brought charm, slight vulnerability and comedy to the role- as a trio, they worked fantastically well together.
Comedy proceedings came in the form of Trinculo, who was performed with the cheeky charisma I have come to expect from Kaden T, who is always a joy to watch, and Stephano who was portrayed in a masterful manner by Louie P, I found Louie to be highly entertaining with quality comedic timing and skill, and I enjoyed their performance so much I would pay to see a spin-off of more of Stephano’s exploits. The two bounced off of each other tremendously, and have a potential double act on the cards!
Donna S had an impressive stage presence as Miranda and I felt I could sit back and enjoy when they were on stage, a feeling I equally had with Jay S who played lovesick Ferdinand in an honest and real manner, the pair of them worked well together and were extremely easy to watch.
Finally, Blake P-E commanded the stage with majesty as Prospero, and delivered Shakespeare’s iconic lines with aplomb. Blake did a fantastic job of learning a vast quantity of lines, in a role where they rarely seemed to leave the stage and I commend him for this. I found his performances captivating and believe he has a brilliant future ahead of him. I certainly look forward to seeing him in more productions.
Overall I thoroughly enjoyed this production and implore others to see it if they can, traditional text and language, mixed with modern storytelling devices and great performances it made for an enjoyable evening.
Well done everyone!
Reviewed by Mitch Hamer
IWtheatre 