narrator and Jessica Viljoen as the spunky girl child)
and a whole lot more classroom kids in the chorus.
But to be honest, what’s even more remarkable
about this show is the fact that
the cast had just one week of every-day
rehearsals before they came on stage!
Hard to believe although Withall
did give her cast the script at
least a month before so they had
time to learn their lines. Otherwise,
it was remarkable the way everything
fell into place, including the special effects,
as when the merciless Miss Trenchbull (who
frankly starred for ‘her’ comedic cruelty) hurled
one student out the window but handily
replaced the naughty boy with a life-size
doll that ‘she’ actually threw away. Fortunately
for Matilda, she finds understanding
kindness from her teacher, Miss Honey
(Molly Carroll) and her school librarian, Mrs Phelps.
A job well done, Banda. A job well done!
Matilda made a splash in Nairobi this past weekend at The Banda School for one night only, and rehearsals to performance were one week! Remarkable.