THERE were some heavenly voices filling Redditch’s Palace Theatre when the town’s Operatic Society brought hit comedy musical Sister Act to the venue.
A packed crowd watched the show which centres around disco diva Deloris Van Cartier who witnesses a murder and is put in a safe house – a convent.
She uses her unique disco moves and singing talent to inspire and transform the hapless choir of nuns but her popularity leads to her cover being blown.
There were many highlights in this show. Among them were Deloris taking two innocent nuns into a downtown bar, quirky number ‘It’s Good to be a Nun’, the scene in the confessional and ‘Lady in the Long Black Dress’ in the second act – the latter two both generated plenty of laugh-out-loud moments.
Liz Bird was brilliant as Sister Mary Lazarus and had the crowd in hysterics everytime she was on the stage. She also received applause mid-song.
Paul Mitchell was also fantastic as Lt Eddie Souther – a role where he could really demonstrate his impressive vocal range.
But the best singers on the night were Laura Woodall in the lead role Deloris Van Cartier and Lucy Traves as Sister Mary Robert. Both never missed a note all night and Woodall added to her performance with perfect comedy timing in the show where funny moments landed every couple of minutes.
The show had a lively start with Take Me to Heaven and the song appeared again as the perfect hook into the interval.
Another impressive aspect was the costumes, from the habits to the ‘plenty of sparkles’ disco outfits.
The only disappointing part about the production was the position of Pope Paul VI on the balcony as many people, particularly in the bottom half of the theatre were unable to see him and his reaction to the choir’s performance.
But overall this show is well worth seeing. It runs until Saturday, November 25, with performances at 7.30pm.
Visit www.redditchpalacetheatre.co.uk or call 01527 65203 for more information and tickets.
