Scarborough Theatre Company brings joy with tune-filled classic Irving Berlin's White Christmas at Spa

Members took Irving Berlin’s classic White Christmas, wrapped it in its immersive, signature-style, labelled it with joy and love and tied it in a big, colourful seasonal bow.

Amazing, brilliant, colourful, dazzling … I could go through adjectives from A to Z and still not convey how wonderful were the two-and-a-half hours of pure entertainment delivered by a mix of high-quality professional and amateur performers.

Director Alex Weatherhill, whose imaginative programming and staging with Scarborough Theatre Company has given the town the Hunchback of Notre Dame, Kinky Boots, Betty Blue Eyes and The Addams Family – breathed new life into White Christmas without losing any of its Broadway-Vaudeville traditions.

For those young enough to believe Mariah Carey’s All I Want for Christmas is a masterpiece, White Christmas was a film starring Bing Crosby, Danny Kaye, Rosemary Clooney and Vera-Ellen released in 1954. It features the title song originally used in Holiday Inn.

It follows former soldiers Bob Wallace and Phil Davies, a famous song and dance act, as they meet and are smitten by sisters’ singing duo Betty and Judy Haynes.

The ‘boys’ follow the gals to Pine Tree, Vermont, where the sisters are booked to perform for Christmas.

The hotel is run by Wallace and Davies’ former commanding officer General Henry Waverley who is to the hospitality industry what Private Baldrick is to cunning plans.

The double act enlist the help of their showbiz friends and concoct a scheme to save Waverley’s business.

What follows is a story of falling in love and friendship warm enough to melt the ice cap.

Doing it more than justice was Martin Richardson as the cynical Wallace, Ben Bailey as the carefree Phil Davies, Laura Kelly as jaunty Judy and Gemma Halliwell as the cautious Betty.

It was a case of light blue touch paper and watch the chemistry between the four main players fizz and fume, steam and sizzle.

Glyn Bigham gave a moving performance as the uptight general forced to realise his days in the US Army were over.

Stand back Ethel Merman, Sarah Golder was in fabulous voice as the general’s general factotum and a star was born in Molly Hill – who stole every scene as Waverley’s granddaughter Susan.

There were cameos for Tilly Canvess as the dance captain, Sophie Dunn and Alice Ashby as showgirls of dubious morals Rita and Rhoda and Matthew Davies multi-roled from TV announcer to train conductor.

Tim Tubbs brought the house down as mono-syllabic hotel handyman Ezekiel Foster.

Choosing a thrust stage – which allows the performers to entrance and exit via the auditorium – brings the action to the front of the stage with its back allowing room for a live orchestra – and, WOW! – what a difference that makes.

Trombones, trumpets, saxophones, clarinets plus violins, cello, double bass and keyboards allowed the swing and sway of the score, under the baton of Andrew Davison, to be played to the max.

Professional, Scarborough-born choreographer Adam Crossley brought the Busby Berkeley touch to the dazzling chorus line, complete with gold, glittering hotpants and waistcoats.

The numbers had that ‘hoofers’ look from 42nd Street – the tap dancing sent tingles of pleasure rippling from the footlights to the back of the auditorium. All bow to Terpsichore – goddess of dance and chorus.

The score is Berlin at his best. From Happy Holiday to Blue Skies and How Deep Is The Ocean to I’ve Got My Love to Keep Me Warm and Count Your Blessings to Snow, there is not a dud in there. Of course, there is White Christmas and the audience revelled in the sing-along.

Scarborough Theatre Company brought Broadway to South Bay. It was a joy-filled, festive, classic song and dance treat.

Hamilton, Book of Mormon, Wicked, Lion King, There’s Something About Jamie, Billy Elliott, Frozen et al have taken the musical to a different level.

Weatherhill and his company proved White Christmas – as old-fashioned as it is – more than earns its place in the modern era. If we consign it and its like to listings in an encyclopedia of theatre – or ‘reboot’ and ‘revive’ them with a woke-spin – then it is our loss. After all, you would not knock The Beatles off a playlist.

The next production from Scarborough Theatre Company is Sunset Boulevard – a show about the vagaries of Hollywood. It is on at Scarborough Spa from Tuesday March 19 to Friday March 22.