Creative Team
Director / Choreographer – Peter Kennedy
Musical director – Billy Cairns
Assistant director / choreographer – Joanne Laverty

Cast
Curly – John Hinchey
Laurie – Siobhán Mullin
Aunt Eller – Angela Smyth
Will Parker – Paul Kelly
Ado Annie – Ceara Grehan
Jud Fry – Michael McAdoo
Ali Hakim – Peter Kennedy
Andrew Carnes – Ken Hamilton
Gertie Cummings – Joanna Bradley
Cord Elam – Seamus Boyle
Mike – Niall Laverty
Ike Skidmore – Andrew Terrington
Girl 1 – Sarah Loonam
Girl 2 – Elizabeth Murphy

Chorus and dancers
Victoria Barkley, Katrina Black, Bill Blair, Shelley Blair, Jennifer Boyd, Seamus Boyle, Joanna Bradley, Deirdre Campbell, Victoria Davis, Des Doherty, Aoife Duffy, Aisling Fleming, Jenny Fleming, Natasha Forde, Ricky Grehan, Jennifer Hall, Kathleen Hayes, Louise Heaney, Margaret Hewitt, Susie Hunt, Joanne Laverty, Niall Laverty, Sarah Loonam, Kieran Magill, Clare Mahon, Maeve McDonald, Anne McLean, Katrina McElhone, Grainne Meehan, Tori Mercer, Veronica Monan, Ann Murphy, Elizabeth Murphy, Emma Phoenix, May Rea, Andrew Terrington, Trevor Wilson

Review

After a long absence from the local stage, Peter Kennedy is playing for laughs as Ali this week in this entertaining show.

Surrounding himself with talented principals, this production boasts some beautiful singing from its romantic leads – Siobhán Mullin’s Laurie, John Hinchey’s Curly, Ceara Grehan’s Ado Annie and Paul Kelly’s Will Parker.

Indeed, Hinchey should be proud of his performance in this his first leading role, while fellow newcomer to the society Joanna Bradley joins with Ken Hamilton to make the most of their minor roles.

Special praise must go to Angela Smyth for standing in at short notice to play Aunt Eller, a role she last played in the Grand Opera House.

Another performer reviving a role for the fifth time is Michael McAdoo, who is a superb Jud Fry – a part which could almost have been written for him.

The  combination of deservedly landing the show’s plum role and being the best all-round female performer on the local scene ensures yet another outstanding performance here from the excellent Ceara Grehan.

Enhanced by lighting, costumes and set are both functional and visually pleasing; this show is only slightly marred by the throwing away of some comic lines due to bad timing and some choreography which is just too adventurous for the average male performer.

Again under the musical direction of Billy Cairns, this company’s strength is its singing, and this show provides a delightful score to show this talent off.

Fielding a cast full of such real characters, it is surprising that Fortwilliam has not staged this Rodgers and Hammerstein show before now.

Equally surprising is the fact that this hard-working company has not yet received funding for this sterling production. As one of the show’s songs goes – “It’s a Scandal! It’s a Outrage!”

Damian Murray, Belfast Telegraph