A NIGHT WITH HAMILTON OPERATIC AT THE METEOR

Director: Philippa Chesham Musical Director: David Hall Choreographer: Hannah McFarlane Venue: The Meteor, 4-6 December 2020

As the rest of the world grapples with a complex global pandemic, right here in paradise (the corner of Victoria Street and ANZAC Parade to be exact), Hamilton Operatic has delivered a compilation show that has left audiences beaming and enthralled.

Literally named ‘A Night with Hamilton Operatic at The Meteor’ opened to a full house on Friday night, following a successful preview performance the night before.

The Society selected numbers from lesser known shows such as Something Rotten, Hadestown, Newsies, The Color Purple, Wonderland and added familiar tunes from Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Hamilton, The Book of Mormon, Waitress, and Mame.

Joseph is best performed with a children’s choir and each performance features either Marian Singers from Marian School in Hamilton East or Tron Songsters a choir made up of 8 to 13-year olds from around the city. The children’s enthusiasm and energy were apparent and their numbers were enhanced by simple but effective costume changes and props.

‘Hello’ from The Book of Mormon performed by Alex Pelham-Waerea, Zach Crowley, Patrick Ward, Dane Moeke and Zac Clarke nearly brought the house down as did the opening number ‘A Musical’ from Something Rotten, and Handel’s ‘Hallelujah Chorus.’ Dane Moeke once again showcased his extraordinary and spine-tingling voice by singing ‘I’m Here’ from The Color Purple.

Director Philippa Chesham, musical director David Hall and choreographer Hannah McFarlane assembled an outstanding cast and crew in record time. A Night with Hamilton Operatic at The Meteor was a textbook example of a thoroughly entertaining compilation show.

From the visually spectacular full company numbers to the soloists, each number was distinct but fitted together wonderfully in a performance that was a reminder of what New Zealand missed out on for a few months, but the rest of the world will miss for months and months to come.