The Stage Musical society hold a concrete reputation for being one of the best performance societies around, and they certainly maintained that incredible reputation in their latest production of A Chorus Line.

Director Sophie Roberts wasn’t mistaken when she called it “a musical like no other;” even though there was the usual plethora of sparkly leotards, high kicks and white smiles, there ran a deep and darker backstory that took the audience on a surprising roller coaster of emotions.

Do they have any regrets about struggling for a career that they love?

The curtain opens in the middle of a hectic audition process of a group of dancers all trying to get a place on the chorus of a Broadway show.  After the director Zack makes the first cut, he wants to know more about his potential remaining cast and so seeks to explore the people behind the stylised stage names and attitudes – no matter how uncomfortable it makes them. Just a few of these fascinating backstories include the sexy -and perfectly played – Sheila who tries to use her sass to cover up her father’s mistreatment, the fresh-on-the-scene Val who’s realised that a bit of ‘tits and ass’ can be a girl’s best friend in the performance industry and the hilariously nervous and tone-deaf Kristine whose husband always finishes off her words for her in perfect tune. Even director Zack can’t escape his past when a familiar face shows up to the audition and their complicated past relationship resurfaces. After an unforeseeable accident happens on stage, the dancers realise that their career can end in an instant and so begin to wonder, spurred on by Zack, what they would do if they could no longer dance – would they have any regrets about struggling for a career that they love?

With their consistent hard work and ever growing talent, Stage Musical society have cracked the code to mind-blowing performances year after year, show after show. So next time you’re in the mood for a musical, instead of having to sell a portion of your family estate in order to afford a ticket to the West End, grab a cheeky drink at Terrace and come on down to the Riley Smith hall where, with their show stopping numbers and powerful vocals, the Stage Musical society are bringing the West End to you.

Melisa Tehrani

Images: Robert Palin