Zest Theatre Group. Victor Harbor Town Hall. 23 May 2025

 

It’s not like the old days when community theatre was a bit of a joke. These days, it’s quite serious business with seasoned performers underscoring the zeal and potential of the up-and-comers in, as it happens at Victor Harbor right now, truly ambitious major productions.

Roald Dahl’s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is not a work for the faint-hearted.

 

It is a big show. Not only does it need a cast of the proverbial thousands but also it needs a zillion costumes and set changes, special effects and bold professional sound.

Zest’s brave production ticks most of these boxes within the limitations of the old Town Hall. It is a crime that Victor still does not have a proper theatre. It certainly has lots of thespians with talent and devotion.

 

This work has been produced by the indefatigable Terry Mountstephen and directed by mother and daughter team, Aria and Natalie Stevenson with choreography from Leila Britton. It has all the big backing sound of the Marc Shaiman score and the beloved Leslie Bricusse and Anthony Newley movie songs.

 

Singers are body-miked and, at times, Zest’s multifunction tech, Greg Rossiter’s volume zeal enables a bit of distortion. Young Robert Walker still has trainer wheels on in the acting department but the kid can sure belt out a song as Charlie Bucket. 

 

Joshua Coldwell is an award-winning old hand, so to speak, and a versatile actor, last seen by this critic as a brutally corporate Rupert Murdoch in the Theatre Guild’s Ink. The role of Willie Wonka could not be in more challenging contrast, but Coldwell captures the character, sings in tune and carries the show, albeit in oddly unfitting trousers.

The costumes for a show of this scale are daunting and Zest has a huge, clever crew behind them. Generally, they are excellent and the OompaLoompa outfits bring the house down.

 

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is a good vehicle for talent spotting and Zest has a wealth of diverse talent from which ballet dancer Eliza Altamura shines forth as the obnoxious Veruca Salt. She’s star material. Vivacious Tia Stevenson is up there, too, in the role of precocious Violet Beauregarde and the production does a very good job of having her blow up as an overjuiced blueberry. Alice Riggs, on the other hand, fat-suited as Augustus Gloop, charms with her stage presence alone, unlike Yasha Button playing Mrs Teavee who simply stuns when she lets loose her big Broadway hot mama voice. Riley Hubbard hones in nicely on the media-sodden character of Mike Teavee. The audience loves him.

Then again, the audience has a lot to love in a diligent cast each carving out a classic Dahl character: John Hogg, Leila Hollingworth, Lucas Irvin, Daniel Cooper, Rachel Coghlan, and Kaitlyn Tanner.

 

The bedridden grandparents are delicious caricatures and the big dance numbers are exuberant good fun with an ensemble which embraces trained dancers and as well as assorted extras of young and even younger. And did I mention that they yodel?

It’s quite a long night and the seats are hard, but this Fleurieu mob knows its stuff and clearly is a company which enjoys working really hard and giving its community a vitality of value for money.

 

Samela Harris

 

When: 23 May to 1 Jun

Where: Victor Harbor Town Hall

Bookings: trybooking.com