Hello Dolly! Review by Karen Cheung
2009-12-18
By Karen Cheung, Merivale High School
Seeking a life-long partner? How about dance lessons? If another skill is required, “Call on Dolly,” the professional meddler, for that too! Last week, Bell High School proclaimed Dolly's "Elegance" in their musical production of "Hello, Dolly!".
Winning 10 Tony Awards from its first Broadway performance in 1964, "Hello, Dolly!" portrays the life of a widowed matchmaker, Mrs. Dolly Gallagher Levi (Stephanie Jones). Tired of the single life, Dolly tries to manipulate half-a-millionaire Horace Vandergelder (Marco Ferraris) into believing that she is his soul-mate by setting him up with bad dates. Meanwhile, Mr. Vandergelder’s two workers, Cornelius Hackl (Dylan On) and Barnaby Tucker (David Young), take advantage of this opportunity to find a little adventure in New York City.
The opening animation designed by Leo Koppel was astounding. The floating credits to introduce the characters before the show commenced were an original and interesting concept. Koppel’s animations were masterfully created; the black and white pictures of the main actors and actresses fluttered naturally down the screen with the help of the occasional breezes in New York City.
Stephanie Jones played the role of Dolly with sassy poise. From her waggling hips to her quick wit, all eyes were drawn to her whenever she was on the stage. Her vocals were strong and her comedic timing always received chuckles from the audience. Equally, Marco Ferraris made Horace Vandergelder – the target of Dolly’s affections – a ridiculously fun sight. With his almost vertical moustache and winning southern accent, Ferraris proved himself a great actor in his confused refusal to Dolly’s unspoken proposal.
Wanting to live for once in his life, Cornelius convinces Barnaby to close the shop by setting off stink bombs in Mr. Vandergelder’s Feed Store. Dylan On and David Young, in the roles of Cornelius and Barnaby respectively, had phenomenal chemistry. The duo was flawless in their chaotic panic to hide from Mr. Vandergelder in Mrs. Molloy’s Hat Shop; frantically searching for a hiding spot in places too tiny to hide, bumping into one another, and popping out from their hiding spots at the worst moments, they employed classic techniques to imitate the humour commonly used in the turn of the 20th century.
Playing Cornelius’ love interest as Irene Molloy, Julia Blakey has been blessed with golden vocal chords. Blakey adeptly adjusted her voice to diminish the effect of any slight errors. Furthermore, in Blakey’s duet with On, the lovers’ voices were wonderfully balanced and their harmonies were astonishing.
From the opening through to the end, the students in the chorus of "Hello, Dolly!" never let their sky-high energy fade away. Many members even developed their own unique characters in the musical. Moreover, the chorus of 36 moved as one with their tight synchronization in “Put On Your Sunday Clothes,” expertly choreographed by David Young and Natalia Bushnik. Although some instruments in the Bell High School Pit Band had difficulty playing a few of the higher notes, they put forth a valiant attempt at the original score and were highly successful in various songs.
It takes less than a minute… no, a second, to have feet tapping to the musical melodies of Bell High School’s production of "Hello, Dolly!", but “It Only Takes A Moment” to fall in love with their cast filled with bigger-than-life personalities.