Hello Dolly by Blackburn Musical Theatre Company - Review

Since 1912, the Blackburn Musical Theatre Company has been entertaining the theatre going folks of this Lancashire town with their annual musical production.  In that time, they have covered the vast array of musical theatre from their first production - Sunday - through to their latest - Hello Dolly - which I caught at the Blackburn Empire Theatre.



Dolly Gallagher Levi (Sue Chadwick) is a woman that likes to meddle, or as she puts it, arrange things.  Whatever you need doing, Dolly is the person for the job. And right now, she is the talk of turn of the century New York, having brought together Mr Horace Vandergelder (Kris Wlodarczyk), the well-known half-a-millionaire and Mrs Irene Molloy (Laura Mitchell) a widowed millener. Their engagement and subsequent marriage seems pretty much sewn up though neither is marrying for love.  Horace, as he tells his Chief Clerk, Cornelius Hackl (Ryan Coe), and Assistant, Barnaby Tucker (Fletcher Illingworth), is looking for someone to run his home ane lend a hand around his hay and feed store. Whilst Irene, as she confides to her assistant, Minnie Fay (Natalie Walton) is just trying to find an escape from the business of making hats. Still, Dolly has done her job and brought Horace and Irene together.  But Dolly has plans of her own, and is working to get a favourable result in not only the Vandergelder/Molloy ‘relationship’ but also for Ambrose Kemper (Simon Thompson) a young and explosive struggling artist who is seeking to marry Horace’s neice Ermengarde (Anna Cryer). Can Dolly nudge Cupid’s arrow to ensure the right people get together and everyone, including herself, has the happy ever after she believes they need?


This was my first experience of seeing a production of the BMTC, and I have to say I was highly impressed. This may be an amatuer company, but this was a full on professionally presented production that had everything right from the start.  The 14 piece orchestra, under Musical Director Chris Andrews, was first rate, and played Jerry Herman’s music with aplomb. David Walton’s sets were not overly lavish, but gave a sense of location whilst leaving plenty of room for the principles and ensemble to perform Katie Fry’s impressive choreography.  In fact, I need to mention the Harmonia Gardens Restaurant scene in Act II at this point. This was an awesome example of every element coming together perfectly. Tony Fry and Gavin H Worthy’s Direction used the stage, and Paddy Keane’s lighting, to brilliant effect, presenting three different, but interlocking stories whilst providing enough space for not only the wonderful ‘Waiters’ Galop’ but also for one the pivotal moments in the show.  For me, every musical has one number that has to be right on the button and in Hello Dolly that number is the iconic title song which, I’m pleased to say was spot on.


And this brings me nicely to the performances. I was absolutely bowled over by Sue Chadwick in the title role.  Sue did everything right. She looked amazing, sounded fantastic and gave Dolly the sass and class that is the hallmark of the character’s personality. Sue didn’t put a dainty shoe wrong all evening and, when coupled with Kris as Horace, we had a match made in heaven.  Horace is the definition of an old curmudgeon and Kris brought that out perfectly. During ‘It Only Takes a Moment’ Horace gives everyone singing the song a look that sums up his contempt and disgust at their weakness for singing about Love. That look was on Kris’s face last night.  Famously it is reported that when filming the movie version of Hello Dolly, Walter Matthau who really disliked Barbra Streisand didn’t even acknowledge her except in front of the camera, and this shows through in their performance on screen together. Thankfully, this production does not suffer from the same problem and there is a chemistry between Sue and Kris that gives a sense of reality to the pairing of two distinct opposites as Dolly and Horace.


And speaking of pairings, Ryan and Fletcher were great together as Cornelius and Barnaby respectively, though if I was being picky, man buns weren’t that well known in turn of the century Yonkers.  Similarly Laura and Natalie worked really well together as Irene and Minnie. However, the four of them together, particularly in ‘Elegance’ and we had an excellent quartet opening the second act.

Overall, this production of Hello Dolly was absolutely first rate.  Both my mother and sister, who accompanied me to the show, absolutely loved it and I completely agree with their summation of the show.  BMTC have put on a professional standard show in every respect. Every element, whether technical or performance, came together beautifully to deliver a first class production that worked on every level.  Hats off to everyone involved.

5 Star Rating
Review by Terry Eastham

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