The Sandown High School cast of Maxwell 5. Picture by Peter boam.
STAGE REVIEW A STRANGE, musical tale about a troubled boy, set to the songs of The Beatles, proved to be excellent fare for the large audiences that watched it at Sandown High School last week.
The show, Maxwell 5 — the fifth of a series of Beatles-related productions and the first in eight years — was devised by sixth formers and performed by 33 students.
The lead role of Jude, a boy with problems dealing with social situations, was played by nine-year-old Sam Morris, of Holy Cross Primary School, East Cowes.
Within the storyline are other sub-plots, which included a pair of geeks who try to find girlfriends, played by Sandown High sixth-formers Bradley Crees and Nye Russell-Thompson, both aged 16.
The show, directed by Pru Lee, Sandown High’s head of performing arts, was watched by good-sized audiences on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday last week.
Throughout the production, a band, comprising students, staff and former Sandown High pupils, played many Beatles classics.
Sandwiched by the opener Help! and the closing number, Hey Jude, the programme included Come Together, Get Back, Blackbird, Something and I Wanna Hold Your Hand. The show was dedicated to the memory of Mark Lee, the stepfather of one of the show’s performers, Charlea May-Williams.
Sandown High drama teacher, Hannah Beasley, said: "It was an unusual but popular production. The band were great and could perform as a Beatles tribute band in their own right.
"They helped bring the production together."
Reporter: jonm@iwcpmail.co.uk