I was pleasantly surprised to find out that a local group was to perform ‘Spamalot’. St. Albans Musical Theatre (previously known as St Albans Operatic Society) have been producing high-quality productions for some years now and I must say expectations were high. St. Albans is blessed with many high-quality amateur and professional performers (being located close to London clearly one of the main reasons), as well as directors and choreographers.
This is the first time I have seen an orchestra pit at the Alban Arena and I was concerned ablout how the sound would carry. I am pleased to say the sound of the orchestra was clear and well balanced. The playing throughout the performance was also of a high standard. The vocal sound was also extremely clear and in perfect balance with the music.
Spamalot is on the humorous end of musical theatre of course and therefore required a big character in the lead role, with good timing and a decent voice. The performance of Stewart Jordan in this role was convincing and brought the right tone of humorous pomposity. Clare Cordell as The Lady of the Lake was also particularly noteworthy. She has a strong voice, with good diction and handled the comedic elements very well. Overall the whole cast shone, doing justice to the great Monty Python material at their disposal.
Overall a triumph, with the sound, costumes and sets of the highest standard. Looking forward to West Side Story in the autumn!
