Jaw-droppingly good. That’s how we’d describe ENCORE Youth Theatre’s performance of Broadway classic Guys and Dolls which is playing at Theatre Royal Winchester this week with a 34-strong cast of young, local talent.

There were so many stars in the cast that it’s hard to do justice to all of them. Joseph Foster as Sky Masterson and Cerian Evans as Mission Sergeant Sarah Brown are brilliant, Livia Scott as the hard-done-by Miss Adelaide and Oli Eadie as her doting but useless beau Nathan Detroit are brilliant. Tobey Livingston as Benny and Rafi Francis as Nicely-Nicely make for a sharp little double act, with Benny’s dancing skills particularly strong.

Characters with less of the action are great too. The Hot Box girls are sassy and squealy, Sister Agatha’s comic timing is spot-on – every time. The Hot Box compere is a fantastic dancer herself. And Salvation Army elder Arvide’s gentle rendition of More I Cannot Wish You is a little gift of a song that is beautifully delivered.

Hampshire Chronicle: by Sam Gavins Photography by Sam Gavins Photography (Image: Sam Gavins Photography)

The choreography in this show is what makes it sensational though. It’s super slick, super inventive and super tight. You’ll be absolutely glued to the stage for the big numbers like ‘Luck Be A Lady’ and ‘Sit Down You’re Rocking The Boat’. Choreographer Ellie Hanson, now 27, was a Hot Box dancer in the show before she left to study at the prestigious Urdang Academy in London. Her talent shines through her young dancers.

This is a show without a weak link. The company effervesces with boundless energy and the talent keeps on pouring off the stage. Was there a standing ovation at the end? Of course, there was! ENCORE’s patron is Hollywood star and former Barton Peveril student Colin Firth. The fact that Hollywood royalty is happy to have his name in the programme says it all.

Review by Liz Kavanagh, from Winchester Magazine. 

Photos courtesy of Sam Gavins Photography