Based on the Academy Award-winning film, Little Miss Sunshine is an outrageously funny and surprisingly touching musical. The Hoover family has seen better days. Richard, the father, is a less than successful motivational speaker, Grandpa’s been kicked out of his retirement home and Sheryl’s suicidal brother Frank has been dumped by his lover. Moody teenager, Dwayne, has taken a vow of silence, and downtrodden mum, Sheryl, can do little more than slap a smile on her face. But, when the youngest member of the Hoover clan “Olive” enters a regional children’s beauty pageant, the family think that their luck has changed and embark on a cross-country journey, chasing the coveted title of “Little Miss Sunshine”.
There are standout performances from all of this truly talented cast. In Particular Olive’s parents, “Gabriel Vick” and “Lucy O’Byrne” are convincing as Richard and Sheryl, a couple battling financial ruin, the problems of an older child, Dwayne “Sev Keoshgerian” who has dreams of being accepted at flight school and “Mark Moraghan‘s” Grandpa who sings enthusiastically about the joys of sex and he was certainly unforgettable!
Look out for Imelda Warren-Green firstly as the hospital administrator, and then later as Miss California – she has two truly scene-stealing cameos that were worth the price of a ticket alone. And for anyone that remembers Margarita Pracatan, you will know what I mean.
“Lily Mae Denman” played the title role of Olive and with a role that would challenge any seasoned actor with a vast amount of dialogue and musical numbers to boot, she delivered like the little star she is.
Little Miss Sunshine doesn’t have jaw dropping sets or instantly hummable songs, but what it does have is HEART.
I surprised myself by how much I enjoyed this!!
Reviewed by Neil Mcfarlane
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