Offspringers & Springers join forces in June 2009 to present Oliver!
Lionel Bart brought irrepressible 'joie de vivre' to his adaptation of Dickens' great novel and produced one of the most successful British musicals of all time, helped in no small part by the 1968 motion picture. The score and the stage simply burst with hit ballads and production numbers, among them "Food, Glorious Food", "Consider Yourself", "As Long as He Needs Me", "Reviewing the Situation" and "You've Got To Pick a Pocket or Two".
About Offspringers
Forthcoming Production
March 2008
Smike
March 2007
The Wizard of OZ
March 2006
Annie
March 2005
Oliver!
March 2004
A Midsummers Night's Dream
March 2003
Bugsy Malone
March 2002
The Vackees
March 2001
Blast Off!
March 2000
The Wizard Of Oz
March 1999
Annie
March 1998
Jolly Mixtures
March 1997
Anything We Can Do
Previous Productions
Offspringers is the offshoot youth group from the main Springers group. It was formed in 1996 and caters for around 60 children aged between 7 and 18. They have performed a number of cabarets as well as the musicals "Annie," "The Wizard of Oz" and "Bugsy Malone" at the Cramphorn Theatre as well as participating in workshops. Offspringers met the challenge of "Shakespeare 4 Kids - A Midsummer Night's Dream" with great aplomb!
Experienced teachers and performers from
Springers run Offspringers.
Offspringers cater for children of all
abilities who have a desire to perform. The aim is to bring the best out of the
children as well as having fun.
Offspringers rehearse at Springfield Parish Centre, Springfield, from 6.15pm - 8.15pm on Wednesdays.
Reviews
SMIKE
OffSpringers at the
Cramphorn Theatre
11.03.08
Dotheboys Hall - a failing school ?
It looked almost over-subscribed in OffSpringers' ambitious production, its
unfortunate inmates crowding the Cramphorn stage.
Sharon Scott's production
looked good: the first glimpse of the gates, the back-lit classroom. The dance
routines [choreographed by Maria French] were lively and imaginative – the
“Stop!” number, with its momentary freezes, the joyous romp of Dotheboys Rock;
even the static opening was full of visual interest.
I thought the reprise of
Here I Am could have had more revolutionary fervour, but the final Believe, with
our hero wandering through frozen figures, was a marvellous moment.
Sophie
Walker, the eponymous orphan, had a pleasant singing voice and some fine flashes
of character, while Lee Wakefield pulled off an impressive double as the two
Heads. I enjoyed the comedy performances of Bethan Anderson and Naomi French as
the Squeers women, and Tom Cilvert's stylish Bolder. James Raynal, an
OffSpringers veteran, brought his considerable stage presence to the charismatic
Nicholas, and Jason Clifford sang well as Snawley.
June Watson was the MD,
wisely sitting in the front row to keep the kids in line.
On the first night
some edges were rough, some opportunities were missed, but the capacity audience
enjoyed an enthusiastic revival of a classic school musical.
Reviewer - Michael Gray, Weekly News
SMIKE – Offspringers, March 11th, 2008
Director –
Sharon Scott
Musical Director- June Watson
I never thought I
would have to say this but the band was remarkably restrained. I don’t know how
Smike is orchestrated but the sound, with just keyboard, guitar and percussion
somehow seemed thin and lacked fullness. Although this may be considered an
advantage in a small theatre with no amplification for the voices I felt that
the band set the tone for the evening. The chorus could sing out as they proved
during Dotheboys Rock, an excellent number in which Bolder shone brightly but
mostly they were a shade hesitant. This may have been first night nerves and
could certainly be forgiven since the show overall was enjoyable. Squeers was
excellent throughout and maintained his Yorkshire accent commendably well. Mr
Nicholls was engagingly innocent and Smike was suitably down-trodden, eliciting
much sympathy during Better off the way I am. Mrs Squeers had good presence
although the “striptease” pastiche didn’t quite work, perhaps too much to ask a
young actress. The set was basic although the scene changes were still quite
long, making for a somewhat disjointed production, with long pauses. Lighting
was good and the Dotheboys schoolroom with windows was cleverly done. I feel
certain that subsequent performances would have moved along with more pace and
security and met the high standards that Offspringers has always achieved in the
past.
Reviewer – Stewart Adkins, NODA