This explosive performance of Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber’s classic musical did not disappoint.
By Louis Bishop
The only way to describe the feeling I get walking towards such a colossally beautiful building as the Wales Millennium Centre is ‘warm butterflies’ – it is such a great venue to have chosen to stage the performance.
On walking through to Ffresh (the bar/eatery inside the WMC), we had a delicious French chardonnay whilst eagerly waiting the call to seat. The atmosphere was alive with a sporadic demographic, from families to a few groups of millennials all in jovial spirits; I blame wine and the summer sun leaving a wide smile on everyone’s faces.
We were shown to our seats in the Mid-Stalls and in my opinion it provides the best view, as you see everything without the neck ache. The music captivated me straight away and the backdrop and layout of the production was fabulous. Jaymi Hensley, who played the lead character Joseph, was phenomenal. I remember seeing him when I visited Disneyland Paris a few years back, when X Factor finalists did a show there, and myself and my partner were lucky to be there at the same time as him. Jaymi is the lead singer of the band put together on X Factor called Union J. It was no surprise that Jaymi’s vocals were amazing, but the venue and the sound here in particular was faultless.
The Narrator Trina Hill was particularly compelling. Being a role that is consistent throughout the performance, she managed to encapsulate herself when she needed to but also didn’t become monotonous and make you feel like it was a role that challenged the lead character; hats off to her.
Every cast member’s performance was testament to such a wonderful musical, and they all gave 100%. The dance routines were very well choreographed and the effort and time it must have taken to put them together made you realise how lucky you were to witness it.
The songs were very catchy. I only knew the one song before watching and by the end of the show on my walk home I couldn’t get the songs out of my head, and have been singing them most of today.
The show, as you can imagine, was very colourful, and I won’t spoil it but the dream coat was amazing. The Wales Millennium Centre is such a magical building and always has the atmosphere second to none. Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat is funny, emotional and a must-see production. I would love to go back and take my Grandmother (and am very tempted to) as we didn’t want the show to end.
It was an honour to attend the show and represent my favourite and also one of Cardiff’s most popular magazines. If you haven’t seen the show yet, GO!!
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat is showing at the Wales Millennium Centre until May 18th. Tickets from £16.
