Our Charlie and the Chocolate Factory production was a tooth-tickling success
A story of hope, of kindness and of the power of pure imagination, Camden Musical Society’s production of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory was a tooth-tickling success!
After five months, 35 rehearsals and eight shows, this incredible journey has come to an end and we are so proud of the production team, cast and crew that made this show possible.
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is the tale of the elusive Mr Willy Wonka, who invites five lucky golden ticket winners into his mysterious chocolate factory. Amongst these winners is Charlie Bucket, poor in funds but rich in childlike wonder and imagination. Accompanied by his Grandpa Joe, Charlie enters the factory and one by one the other children succumb to a series of “accidents” prompted by their greed, pride, selfishness and arrogance. Charlie, as the only child left, finds a kindred spirit in the inventor and is rewarded by Mr Wonka for his kind heart, curiosity and creativity with a schnozztastic prize, the chance to live out his dream of becoming a world famous chocolatier.
The creative talents of Sophie Cornett and Isobel Holland (Co-directors), Ian Buchanan (Musical director), Bianca Annetts (Choreographer) and Sydney Madsen (Assistant Choreographer) were all represented in the high energy, physicality and beautiful music of the production. The creative team was supported by the fantastic organisation capability of our production managers Helen Boyer, Kerrie Jiear and Emma Collyer throughout the experience.
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory was a feast for the eyes, with colourful costumes and fantastic sets and props helping to tell our story at every turn. Highlights include (but are certainly not limited to), the amazing coordination of orange face paint and green wigs sported by the Oompa Loompa’s and the fabulous sequinned jumpsuits of our Gum Chompin’ Diva’s. From the brightly coloured multi-levelled candy store to imposing Wonka gates and ending with our beautiful great glass elevator, our sets team captured the vision for the show and transported our audience from the Bucket home to the Wonka factory incredibly throughout the production. And finally the plethora of props including squirrel puppets, endless contracts, massive chocolate bars and tiny Mike Teavee’s generated some incredibly fun moments for the cast and audience alike.
As a story that is centred around fun and complex characters, the cast are absolutely pivotal to the telling of this story. And the cast for Charlie and the Chocolate Factory have been absolutely incredible from start to finish. It was a true joy to see the bonds that formed and watch everyone’s incredible talents shine through on that stage in every moment. A huge thanks to the cast for supporting our vision and each other throughout the experience.
Finally, it takes a village to stage a musical, and this would not have been possible without the incredible team of volunteers and supporters who have supported this process. Our unending gratitude goes out to the production team leaders, front of house volunteers, cast supervisors, backstage crew, props assistants, sets builders and designers, costumers, marketing assistants, tech operators, orchestra, family and friends and CMS committee who helped tell this story and supported the vision of the show. Special thanks go out to our major sponsors for the show, Camden Council and the Dessert Lab for their support throughout the production.
To our audiences, it is for you and because of your support that CMS continues to be able to tell these wonderful stories and provide an opportunity for our local talent to shine. Thank you for coming with us on this journey, we hope you enjoyed the show and we look forward to seeing you at CMS’s next production!
Enjoy these beautiful snapshots of the production.
