Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor DreamcoatRegent, Ipswich - until Saturday.

Dreamcoat

Regent, Ipswich,

All week until Saturday, March 15>

TWENTY years ago a respected critic is said to have written the following.

“I could watch this show a hundred times and then come back for more. It sweeps away all of the dreary sham that nowadays passes for theatre. It has everything, wonderful music and lyrics, splendid direction and choreography, characters and clowns and one of the best story lines ever written. But above all it has honesty.”

There are no better words that I can find for the production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, which opened at the Regent last night.

Less than a year ago its stars, narrator, Keith Jack, and Joseph, Craig Chalmers, were desperate for their big break in showbusiness.

Through the BBC1 show Any Dream Will Do they had a chance to showcase their talents and after making the final before losing out to Lee Mead, they have been given their chance.

Now touring with this latest production of 'Joseph' the pair take the main roles, which set the tone a wonderful evening.

What a performance they and their fellow cast members give. Full of vitality and fizz, the unforgettable numbers which weave the storyline together were delivered in a way that held the packed audience spellbound.

It is a gift to have the sort of talent which can bring so many smiles to people's faces.

However, this production is not just about the two best-known members of the cast. Every one of the company put their heart and soul into it and the audience were rewarded with an evening which will live long in the memory.

Liberally sprinkled with humour and a wide range of musical styles, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, crackles along at a breakneck pace.

The energy and subtlety of the performances is truly breathtaking.

The biggest recommendation I can give is that for one who can take or leave musicals, I would be happy to see this production again.

Those who are filling the Regent during the course of this week are the lucky ones though.

Unlike the audience which gave the company a standing ovation last night, they are yet to sample the panache with which this feel-good iconic musical is portrayed by its exuberant cast.

All in all, a dream of a production.

What did you think of the production? Write to Your Letters, Evening Star, 30 Lower Brook Street, Ipswich, IP4 1AN or e-mail starletters@eveningstar.co.uk.

Colin Adwent