Summer Youth Project: Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Orchard West Theatre, Dartford. 21.08.26
It is always a pleasure to spend a Friday evening at the Orchard West Theatre, probably for the last time before they officially return to the OG Orchard Theatre in December for panto. It’s been a long time coming and we’re excited to see what it looks like now! (Stay tuned to hear what we think).
This evening’s visit was for the Summer Youth Project production; this year they picked a firm favourite with Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. It was great to see so many families out supporting their aspiring young actors and actresses, along with two special guests: Rusty Goffe, who played one of the oompa loompas in the original Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory film, and his son Ben Goffe, who will be playing Buttons in the upcoming Cinderella panto at the Orchard Theatre this year.
There was an absolutely massive cast of young performers for this, as well as a technical youth team behind the scenes. Far too many to name everyone, and unfortunately the programme didn’t specify who played who, so hopefully they will forgive me for referring to them by the character names rather than their actual ones.
I was particularly impressed by the young lady who played Charlie, who never stumbled during her many lines and solo songs, which were delivered strongly and steadily, never wavering across the two Acts.
The confidence of the young actresses who played Willy Wonka, Veruca and Violet was equally impressive. Willy Wonka for her comic, quirky flare. Veruca for her flawless swap between saintly and bratty behaviour, and Violet for her sass.
Grandpa Jo and the other chaperones all put their own spin on their roles, along with a few excellent accents!
Perhaps easily overlooked but she shouldn’t be, is the young lady who played Charlie’s mum. She had a really beautiful singing voice and strong acting skills, but with fewer lines than a lot of other characters and no appearance in Act Two, this could get missed. She is certainly one to watch, and I hope to see her again in future productions in an even more prominent role.
It is worth noting that all performers are between the ages of 9 and 19 and had just two weeks to rehearse this before their first performance. To bring together something so seamless in such a short space of time, particularly given the number of people involved, deserves nothing but praise. Hats off to the creative team for their direction, giving these young performers a production they can be truly proud of.
The whole cast performed with a maturity and professionalism that exceeded their age group, and it was great to see them all on stage together clearly having fun. Their enthusiasm for the production was clear and infectious, making for a really fun evening.
There is limited time to see this one as they are only performing four shows between Friday 21st August and Sunday 23rd August. Tickets can be purchased here.
