THE Jerry Herman songbook never sounded so heartfelt and full of zest as in Bridgwater Amateur Operatic Society’s production of ‘Showtune’ at the Arts’ Centre.

Conceived by Paul Gilger, ‘Showtune’ weaved together songs from eight of Herman’s musicals.

The idea was to bring a fresh perspective to these classic musical standards and Herman noted that they had “their own little stories having nothing to do with the way they’re done in the actual shows”.

Much of the credit for producing such a classy show must go to Sarah Young and Sue Rawle’s imaginative direction and the skilled music direction of Bill Young.

The sophisticated presentation, staged with a simple but beautifully balanced and lit set, consisted of both fully-sung songs or fragments combined in medleys with solos, duets and full-cast items.

Like any good musical revue, each singer had their moment to shine. Nikki Standerwick gave a heartfelt performance of ‘Time Heals Everything’ and Dave Bonser revelled in his rendition of ‘A Little More Mascara’.

Darren Oxman’s ‘It Only Takes A Moment’ from ‘Hello, Dolly’ judged the emotions within the song perfectly.

‘Showtune’ lifted the spirits and was so tuneful the audience were sure to be humming songs long after seeing the show.

Congratulations to this award-winning society for their high quality production – it was wonderful. PAUL BILLING