Mr Bumble's Bewitching Bookshop, The Bryce, Burneside

BURNESIDE Amateur Theatrical Society took its audience on a magical trip through literature via song in their production of Mr Bumble's Bewitching Bookshop, writes PHIL HULL.

The concept of the show was that the local council had decided that the bookshop in question should be demolished to make way for an EU funded bypass. The superbly played hapless officer chosen to deliver the message to Mr Bumble, also excellently portrayed, was all Ipad, Ipod and Iphone. However, when Mr Bumble asked what literature she knew he was met by a blank stare so he decided to take her through some of the most popular books in his shop.

Now came the really clever bit. The books chosen had all been made in to musicals and here the rest of the cast took over to perform a selection of songs from those musicals. They included the Wizard of Oz, Oliver, Wicked, Pygmalion, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Mary Poppins and theme tunes from James Bond. I suspect there were many in the audience who were not aware that Ian Fleming, the author of the James Bond books, also wrote Chitty Chitty Bang Bang or that Shaw's Pygmalion was the basis for My Fair Lady.

The singing and dancing were up to BATS usual high standard. A standout moment for me was the theme from Skyfall (which, incidentally, was not written by Fleming but by Jeffrey Deaver), which was beautifully sung to the backdrop of a solo balletic dance.

The script, by John Dodds, led us seamlessly through the evening and had some comedy cameos, the skit on fruit that shares a name with electronic items (Blackberry, Orange, Apple) being memorable.

With so many people involved it is not possible to list everyone but I must congratulate Sue Cook on her thought provoking, cleverly crafted and uniquely conceptualised production and Gordon Lawson for, in Sue's words, his guidance and turning her ideas in to reality.

Incidentally, at the end, the council withdrew the demolition order as EU funding had been withdrawn.