Broadway Sessions On Tour: Balaklava

Alex has loved the theatre since a young age seeing her first show of Me and My Girl. After seeing multiple musicals including her favourites Phantom of the Opera and Beauty and the Beast, Alex enrolled with singing lessons with Joan Leslie in the Adelaide Hills. Mostly for a bit of fun she continued for a few years before a long 10 year break before auditioning for Balaklava Community Arts' production of Beauty and the Beast and being able to perform her dream role of Belle in 2014. This is inspired her to take up singing again and is always looking for new opportunities to gain experience and have some fun. Alex has recently performed in the ensemble with the G&S Society in their 2018 production of The Phantom of the Opera.

Bronwyn has only recently come to musical theatre as a vocalist, backstage for Cats with The Met in 2015, and in the Chorus of Fiddler on the Roof with Therry this year. In the eighties she played her French Horn in the orchestra pit for a few G&S productions with Marie Clarke – but that was before marriage and children changed everything. There have, however, been a few vocal highlights along the way, such as performing solo (and with her husband) at the reception of the Olympic Flame at Colley Reserve in 2000. Bronwyn enjoys performing swing and broadway material, along with her family, in retirement villages around Adelaide and singing at church.

Buddy is a high school drama teacher who loves to perform. He has worked with a number of amateur theatre companies in Adelaide and has played many over-the-top characters (whilst breaking many bones in the process).

Casey grew a passion and love for music at a young age, and as a vocalist she began competing in the local Balaklava Eisteddfod when she was just 10 years old. She took part in the vocal, musical theatre and contemporary vocal sections and thoroughly enjoyed each opportunity to perform and develop her skills. Casey also loved taking part in the Balaklava Community Art Productions, including playing Judah in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat and Lisa, a Pirate and an Indian in Peter Pan.

While attending Horizon Christian School Casey took part in many stage productions including Little Woman, The Letter, Pollyanna and The Wind in the Willows. Casey is currently in her second year of studying music at Tabor College, majoring in voice within a range of styles including Musical Theatre, Folk, and Contemporary.

Growing up performing in the Scouts’ Gang Show: Comedy Capers, David developed a love for musical theatre from a young age. Trained at the Centre for the Performing Arts; David has enjoyed performing Shakespeare with the State Theatre, Lightning Strike and Chopt Logic Theatre Companies and has toured in the past with Splash Theatre Company. Turning from professional acting to focus his energy on his family and work for the Anglican Church as a priest, David chooses to do shows that he loves.

It was in Marie Clark's production of Paris in the titular role that David hit the Adelaide scene in musical theatre. David has since performed with Marie Clark Musical Theatre in Miss Saigon (John) and as Carl Hanratty in the 2016 production of Catch Me if You Can. He has worked with Northern Light Theatre Company as Frederick in Pirates of Penzance and Seymour in Little Shop of Horrors. David also performed at the Adelaide Fringe Festival in 2015 with Lazy Saturday Productions' Australian premiere of Darkle. 2017 was a big year of theatre for David starting with Pale Ale Tales, a new work by local writer, Jason Hendy in the 2017 Adelaide Fringe, Jekyll and Hyde with Marie Clark and finishing with Les Misérables as Enjolras with G&S Society. Most recently David performed with the Hills Musical Company in Assassins as John Wilkes Booth.

David is thankful to his wife for her love and support, and for letting him play.

Emily lives in rural South Australia and loves to perform. Roles she has played have been Glinda (The Wizard of Oz), Vi (Footloose), Witch (Into the Woods), Reno (Anything Goes), Crystal (Little Shop of Horrors). Emily has also served as co-director (Into the Woods), Music Director (Little Shop of Horrors, Mamma Mia) and Costume Designer (Footloose, Shrek). Emily has had a brief break from the stage while she studies to become a teacher.

While being a parent and university student in a rural town, Emily continues to persue her love of performing. She has performed in a number of shows and has also served as a production team member. Her favourite roles have been Vi in Footloose and Reno in Anything Goes.

Kaitlyn played her dream role of Christine Dae in Phantom of The Opera at just 16 years old. She also travelled around Europe for her final year of high school singing as the lead soprano and soloist, and on her travels through Italy she performed in the Vatican. Recently, Kaitlyn has spent her year traveling around Australia working with Opera Australia and has been focusing on her theatre management. She loves having the chance to perform when she can.

Many of Lisa's happiest childhood memories are from the wings and stairwells of the Shedley Theatre, where she has been performing since she was two. As a child, she performed in Northern Light Theater Company’s (NLTC) productions of Annie, Carousel, The King & I and Bugsy Malone, whilst also dancing with Total Image Dance Company. She grew into playing lead roles in her high school’s musicals including: Rosie in Bye Bye Birdie, Sarah Brown in Guys and Dolls and Katisha in the Hot Mikado. After a decade long hiatus from the stage, to gain her qualifications as a psychologist and start her career, she re-joined NLTC for their 2016 production of Cinderella and loved playing Mae in their 2017 production of Pajama Game. She is thrilled to be a part of the Adelaide theater community again.

Singing and dancing from the age of 5, Natalie had her musical theatre debut late in life playing Cinderella in the University of Adelaide's production of Into The Woods. Igniting her passion for the art, she went onto gaining lead roles in A Funny thing Happened on The Way to The Forum, The Mikado and The Magic Flute. After graduating from her Classical Voice degree she continued to perform as a soloist and chorus member in The Sound of Music and Guys and Dolls and is currently working on Les Misérables with the Gilbert and Sullivan society. Natalie is a senior school music teacher, loves her job and feels so blessed that she can do what she loves everyday.

Phoebe has spent the last 13 years singing in front of an audience. She began acting in year 7 after she starred in a class movie which was a parody of Days of Our Lives. She has taken on multiple roles but considers her favourite role to be Goldilocks in Charmed. Currently, she is an Out of School Hours Teacher and loves getting the students involved with music. You can often find (or hear) Phoebe singing everywhere she goes.

Scott has always had a love of the theatre, but his real obsession began in high school, with performances as the Foreman, Pimp and a Student in Les Misérables, Priam in Paris and Action in West Side Story. Since completing high school he performed non-stop for a number of years, starting with Gerald Bolingbroke in Me and My Girl, an Apostle in Jesus Christ Superstar and Ugly in Honk! (Marie Clark Musical Theatre). After playing Cornelius Hackl in Hello, Dolly! and Asher and the Butler in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat (Metropolitan Musical Theatre Company of SA), Scott joined Northern Light Theatre Company’s production of Disney’s Beauty and the Beast as Monsieur D’Arque to round out 2011. The following year started with an incredible experience: Scott won the role of Henry in Six Foot Something’s pro-am Production of Next to Normal. After a mild performance hiatus in more recent times, Scott starred as Hunter in Irregular Productions sell out 2015 Adelaide Fringe season of [title of show].

If there’s one thing he regrets, it’s not starting singing and performing (publicly of course) at an earlier age. Off-stage (but in the theatre) Scott enjoys both sound and lighting design, and the challenges each of these areas brings to his knowledge of design in the digital world. Broadway Sessions is certainly the start of a new chapter, bringing together many ongoing stories and plot lines, but allowing the love of theatre (musical theatre in particular) to continue in new and exciting ways.

When not strutting his stuff on stage, or manically helping out backstage or in the roof of a theatre, Scott is a web designer & developer, creating sites like this one! You can see more of his work at www.scottreynolds.com.au.

Sophie has been taking singing lessons since she was seven and performed in her first community theatre productions since the age of 8. She was bitten by the bug, and countless musicals and plays followed in quick succession. Some highlights include playing Nancy in Oliver!, Annie Golden in The Leader of the Pack, as well as Saskia in Stalled, a play devised by her and some school friends. Now she is embarking on a new chapter in musical theatre, having moved to Sydney to study music theatre at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music. As well as an obvious obsession with performing in Musical Theatre, Sophie enjoys playing piano, classical singing, as well as composing.

Following training in classical voice at Elder Conservatorium, and many years as a soloist at weddings, parties and (almost) anything, Wendy’s involvement in theatre has seen her embrace a wide variety of character roles over the past 25 years. These have ranged from haughty Sister Berthe in The Sound of Music, fragile Old Sally in Oliver! and the delightfully dithery Mrs Tottendale in The Drowsy Chaperone ... to memorable characters created for the busy ensembles of The Goodbye Girl and Big Fish. She has appeared as Ruth in The Pirates of Penzance several times, and can't seem to stop performing in Les Misérables.

Wendy has appeared with Emma Knights Productions as Ruth in Pirates of Penzance (Adelaide Fringe Festival), Aunt Eller in Oklahoma! On A Farm, Mrs Rachel Lynde in Anne of Green Gables and Sister Berthe/Frau Schmidt in The Sound of Music.

Peter is a music director, accompanist, repertoire coach, and the founder of Irregular Productions - one half of the brains behind Broadway Sessions.

He has been a theatre music director since 2005, with a number of his shows winning local awards. Theatre Credits include: (as Music Director) Beautiful, Mamma Mia, Les Misérables, Next to Normal, Violet, The Story Of My Life, Songs For A New World, The Light In The Piazza, You're A Good Man Charlie Brown, Into the Woods, Disney's Beauty and the Beast, [title of show], Edges, Avenue Q, Bring It On, Singing In The Rain, Fiddler on the Roof, Oliver!, Monty Python’s Spamalot, Chicago, Sweeney Todd, The Sound of Music, Urinetown the Musical, Scrooge, The Witches of Eastwick, Little Shop of Horrors, Seussical the Musical, Grease, Once Upon a Mattress; (as Associate Music Director) Kinky Boots; (as Conductor) City of Angels, The Addams Family; (as Associate Conductor) Rent; (as Assistant Music Director) Jesus Christ Superstar, Godspell, South Pacific, Copacabana; as well as playing keyboard in over 25 other productions.

Besides co-producing Broadway Sessions, Irregular Productions has also staged the South Australian premieres of Songs for a New World, [title of show] and Edges, as well as a new production of Godspell (with Lydian Productions).

Peter is also the music director for Civic Park Carols, Australia's second-largest candlelight carols event, working with some of Adelaide’s finest musician’s and performers, as well as artists such as Justine Clarke, Guy Sebastian, Rachel Beck, and Jimmy Giggle.

Louis has been playing both double bass and bass guitar as long as he can remember. Beginning with lessons at the age of 7, he quickly developed his skills and decided that music was the career for him. Louis began playing for Musical Theatre shows in 2011, with the Northern Lights Theatre Company’s production of Beauty and the Beast, which coincidentally, was the beginning of a long-standing working relationship with Musical Director, Peter Johns! Since, Louis has played for many theatre companies around Adelaide, including Adelaide Youth Theatre, Lydian Productions, Pelican Productions, Davine Productions, Irregular Productions, Marie Clarke Musical Theatre, The Gilbert & Sullivan Society of South Australia, and Hills Musical Company. Some of his favourite shows to play for have been In the Heights, for Pelican Productions in 2019, and Beautiful: The Carol King Musical, for Davine Productions in 2020. In 2018, Louis had the privilege of playing in the pit for the Gordon Frost Organisation’s touring production of The Wizard of Oz. Louis graduated from the Elder Conservatorium of Music in 2016, with a Bachelor of Music (Classical Performance.) That same year, he began performing as a casual member of the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra - some of his favourite performances include Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire in Concert at the Adelaide Entertainment Centre, and Last Night of the Proms at the Adelaide Festival Centre.