From tiny tots to senior citizens, the stage was crammed with characters – many of whom were up way past their bedtime – but the show must go on.

Tamworth Musical Society president Ben Mettam said Seussical the Musical was a fun show to do and houses certainly picked up as word of mouth spread about how good it was.

“The last week-and-a-half in particular was extremely busy,” Mr Mettam said.

“We were very pleased to have almost 3000 people through the doors, which is well above average.

“Among that number were a lot of families, which was great to see. I guess it was a cheap night out for the whole family, seeing something live, especially.”

Mr Mettam said the heroes of the show were the littlest cast members, who stayed up well past their nightly bedtime to see the final curtain call.

“They were real troupers. We tried to help them out during rehearsals by letting them do their bit early and go home, but it’s the parents we really need to thank – for dropping them off and picking them up at 11 o’clock each night after the show. There were a few tired faces on the littlies during the show. One even started to nod off during a performance,” he said.

With a production of that size and scale, it takes more than 100 people to put it all together, from stagehands and wardrobe assistants to lighting directors, musicians and more.

There will hardly be a break before the society’s next production starts rehearsing in earnest in a few weeks’ time – and it’s back to the classics for this one.

It’s been more than 20 years since My Fair Lady was last performed in Tamworth and Mr Mettam said director Ann Walsh would be responsible for the “revamped” version of it.

Gabriela McDonald and Peter Ross will take the leading roles in the new production.

Tamworth Musical Society has an annual membership of about 150 people, although its Facebook page has attracted 400 members – both past and present.

Demi says experience was unforgettable

YEAR 10 Calrossy student Demi Ball was one of the cast members of the production of Seussical the Musical put on by the Tamworth Musical Society.

It was a great hit and an exciting few weeks for the teenager. Although only having ever performed in local dance performances, eisteddfods and school productions previously, Demi decided to put her very limited singing experience into something bigger, which led to four months of fun and a newfound love for stage singing. Demi wrote this piece for The Leader about her stage experience:

OH THE thinks you can think! 

The past four months have definitely been some of the most fun and exciting I have ever experienced in my life. 

Since starting rehearsals at the beginning of February, I have had the privilege to be in the company of more than 30 talented individuals for no less than twice a week. And it has been absolutely “amayzing”.

Being in the ensemble of the Tamworth Musical Society’s latest production of Seussical the Musical has been epic; I have loved the whole process, as I can honestly say there was not a single rehearsal where I didn’t learn something new. 

Whether it was continually practising the same old song or learning a different dance routine, I enjoyed all of it; being surrounded by the cast and crew was so inspiring and I loved being a part of a project that we all worked together on to achieve.

Being my first musical with the TMS, I was able to see first-hand the amount of hard work involved in producing a production this big and especially the dedication of none other than our awesome director, Geraldine Palmer. Geraldine has worked immensely hard, not only during rehearsals but also in her own time and in the months leading up to the initial auditions.

Geraldine saw the whole show through: from mapping it out to spending long days painting sets, checking costumes, staying at the theatre until the early hours of the morning to ensure the lighting was spot on and correcting our mistakes.

What the audience saw on stage was the result of what had ultimately been Geraldine’s vision for the show and what she had worked hard to achieve.

Sam Langston and Jacquie Frazer were awesome as music directors; they were always there to help us learn and master the songs, going over and over until we got it right.

Without their hard work and expertise, the show really wouldn’t be worth watching.