My programme notes included the following: "This is a bawdy, exhilarating, musical romp from start to finish with moments of great tenderness". And so it was! Heartiest congratulations to the production team - Stephanie King, Karen Anstiss and Nick King. As MD for the company, Nick did a splendid job coaching principals and chorus alike and the band parts he created for the musicians were spot on, achieving the right atmosphere of the period at all times. The Band, although small in number, was well balanced. Stephanie and Karen put on a magnificent production and they should both be justly proud of their efforts. It was particularly well cast with a lot of attention to detail. Well done to you all! The part of Moll Flanders is all action packed from start to finish and Linda Hayes certainly did it justice. She interacted extremely well with both her female and male counterparts and her acting and singing at all times kept the audience spell-bound. Young Moll, played by Millie Hayes, had good stage presence and for a youngster of 5 to take to the stage as Millie did, does this predict a future stage career? Sian Bowles Bevan as Moll's mother was outstanding. At the end of Act l , even though the audience was in no doubt as to what was going to be revealed, the sensitive and beautiful way that Sian and Linda played out the realisation that mother had found daughter and Moll had married her brother was a real tear jerking moment. I never thought I would hear Karen Steel lose her lovely Scottish accent but as Lady Constable, she adopted a real `plum in the mouth' voice and she looked and sounded exquisite. Karen had the characterisation under control the whole time and played a great role. Throughout the show, the men shone - in particular Miles Eagling as Cyril. His `foppishness' was wonderful and the dialogue, poses and hand movements were in character the whole way through. Ben Morgan, as his brother Robert, was a perfect foil for Cyril. He performed confidently and was able to keep his affected speech throughout. Not to be outdone by her 'brothers', Liz Knowles as Corrinder played the truly spoilt daughter well and I particularly enjoyed her snooty attitude during the Portrait Song. What ever Martin Elliff takes on, he does a fine job! As Jemmy, he conned his way into Moll's life with consequences that had the audience reeling - and a very credible bed scene!! Jan Marchant's Mother Midnight was totally believable, portraying all of the many emotions required, and played sympathetically against Moll. Another fine performance, Jan. This show was full of small character parts, all of which were well presented. The successful suitors, Dave Simpson, Sam Thomas and David Smith were all excellent and each had their own character well defined. Karen Benny as Lucie and Sue Astbury as Daisy were both ideally cast. Karen was lively and very flirty with the sailors and Sue displayed a convincing acting ability with a particularly good singing voice. The sailors, Abe and Jerry played by Richard Field and Colin Smith came across as a lively duo, out for what they could get. Berni Messenger, Gareth Bevan, Peter Campbell, Ken Kinghorn, Ken Williams, Rob Seymour and Adrian Duce all played excellent parts. A particular mention to Berni, as the drunkard whose splendid bass voice was a pleasure to hear, Ken K who was terrific as a Fop, and Adrian who looked exceedingly authentic and acted well throughout. The girls also shone and particular mention to Jo Burton (well balanced on those stilts!) Dawn Slaughter, Ann Baldwin and the four prisoners, Jacqueline Wood, Angela Crockford, Jackie Morgan-Smith and Sarah-Jane Wiltshire. The chorus was an integral part of the show and everyone looked and performed exceptionally well. The choreography depicted the dance steps of the period and was well executed. I may not have mentioned everyone by name but the whole cast, whether chorus or principal, played to a very high standard. The nice touches I enjoyed were: - the laying down of the carpet to music; the coach with the wheels eventually turning into the horse; and although a small part, the artist, David Benny, caught my eye. As well as having a main part, Karen Steel also took on a particularly demanding role of Costume Designer and she must be congratulated, along with the other members of the Wardrobe team for a magnificent result. The details of the costumes, hairstyles (particularly the men) and the make-up could not be faulted. Well done to Demelza Edwards, Greasepaint and Friends of Gloc. A lot of hard work but I can promise you, it was well worth the effort. The set, designed by Steve Parfitt, was tremendous - absolutely appropriate for all the staging of the production. Lighting design by Pete Balls was very atmospheric and worked well. Sound by Richard Eliot was first-class. The stage managers, Mary and Kevin Good should be applauded for a smooth operation and the crew moved silently and swiftly making for an uninterrupted performance. All the props by Sam Thomas and Rick Myrtle were good and in period. I received a very warm welcome from Jim Simpson, Front of House manager, resplendent in a very colourful waistcoat, and also from Martin Wilcox. I understand that Martin is standing down as Chairman of Gloc. From my very short time as your NODA rep. I know that Martin has worked extremely hard for the society and is a very talented actor and musician in his own right. He will be a hard act to follow! Summary It was good to see that Gloc continues its tradition of performing new and exciting works and this production of Moll Flanders, was undoubtedly a winner. I have said it before and I will say it again, G1oc is a very talented society with enthusiastic members all doing their best to give the audience a night to remember. They certainly succeeded!!!!! Well done.

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