On the tail-end of the Curve's recent season launch comes their first in-house musical, AM DRAM. Written by duo Alex Parker and Katie Lam comes an incredibly witty, moving and brilliant piece of work that encapsulates the people and passion at the heart of amateur dramatics.

Based on characters the writers know and love, we are thrust into the action of Great Osterford North Amateur Dramatics Society (GONADS) as they begin working on their latest production. At the top is officious Chairwoman Honoria (Wendy Ferguson) who appoints 'professional' director Max (Raj Ghatak) to make their vision become a reality. In the company is established leading lady Diana (Janie Dee), anxious Elaine (Debbie Chazen) who is desperate to organise a successful curry and quiz night for the cast, gentle Ian (Jordan Lee-Davies) who’s looking for somewhere he can escape from his office job and then Karen (Sharan Phull) just wants everyone to remember which one is which! However, newcomer Rose (Laura Pitt-Pulford) is a former professional actress who is about to ruffle some feathers.

One of the characters who particularly stands out in this performance is the unforgettable Elaine, played by Debbie Chazen. She does an exceptional job and is effortlessly hilarious throughout it all. There is a particular scene in which Rose celebrates her birthday and she brings in a Colin The Caterpillar cake mid rehearsal. She brings a gorgeous level of warmth to the community we are witnessing.

The comedy musical has been curated superbly, despite losing the opportunity to bring it to life with a set design. Although you can definitely envisage how this production will develop even further and transition through the different scenes. What is lost in the set design is made up by the gorgeous lighting design that allows these characters to really shine in the spotlight. The cast use the round set up of Curve really well, although at times they didn’t always perform to all areas of the audience. What AM DRAM do have though are fantastic characters to fill the void perfectly.

AM DRAM is musically strong too. The range of musical styles embedded in the show are brilliant. Favourites are ‘Never Give Up’ and the last two numbers, which really set the bar for how wonderful amateur dramatic communities are. What is also great is hearing the tones of the 9-piece orchestra move us musically throughout this production.

Such a fantastic way to welcome audiences back to the Curve Theatre with this show, just brilliant!

***** Five stars

Reviewed by: Emmie Newitt