This group is comparatively new and having seen their previous production of Kiss of the Spider Woman, I was expecting something special from them. I was not disappointed.

Produced by Bruce Smith and directed by Heather Simpkin, Cabaret was a triumph.

As well as directing, Bruce Smith was an excellent choice for playing Emcee, a role he has coveted for some time. Philippa Tozer was a dazzling Sally Bowles and her rendering of Maybe This Time was filled with emotion.

Her co-star Lloyd White made a dashing Clifford Bradshaw.

Pamela Brewer and James Fitzgerald, as Fraulein Schneider and Herr Schultz respectively, added a poignancy to their roles as the German and Jew who

were forbidden to love.

Ioan Havard as Ernst Ludwig made a sinister Nazi with Liz Balmford as Fraulein Kost and a delightful Karl Bowdry as the Nazi youth.

Jane Anderson's exciting and innovative choreography was ably performed by the Kit Kat Girls.

The costumes were superb and the set was incredible with smooth scene changes and very effective lighting.

The band under their MD Graeme Taylor was skilled in its performance if a trifle too loud for the singers at times.

This show runs until Saturday at Nordern Farm Theatre in Maidenhead.

Get tickets if you can, you will not be disappointed.

Check our What's on guide for details in your area.

By Rita Carpenter