Report Paul Murphy
Without overdoing the old pun stuff, it is fair to say that the long and short of it (ouch) is that the Kells Musical and Dramatic Society’s production of Pinocchio is outstanding. I went nosing (!) around the old Eureka House assembly hall on Friday night and got great pantomime value for my €10 (plus the raffle tickets and the amazing brochure at €3 amply supported by Kells businesses). The older ones in the audience would be entitled to say “Where did those 49 years go to?” as they reminisced about the early shows in the 1970s.
In all those years Pinocchio has had three outings and it doesn’t get any easier as John Grant told Meath Live a couple of weeks ago. And it must get harder for himself as he fills the roles of author and director, musical director, set designer, show effects creator, booking office staff members, show programme designer and public relations officer, not to speak of the role of Biddy Burnbread.
Behind productions of this sort are the people who raise enough money to stage the show and sponsors of all sorts are called upon to help out. On this occasion, four major sponsors stepped forward – Pat Bellew (Jimmy’s Cleaners), Ken Yore (Ken Yore Wholesale Distributors), Supervalu Kells, and John Hogan of Hogan’s Farm and 40-odd patrons are also named in the credits. The society needed all the money it could get because after leaving the St Vincent de Paul Hall, additional funds had to be raised in order to stage Pinocchio.
The outstanding community spirit needed to stage productions like this was on display during the 10 shows. Friendly volunteers greeted patrons at the entrance and every effort was made to make them comfortable during the show. Take a bow, the 120-odd cast members. You were magnificent. And a special shout out to those junior dancers and singers, especially the tiny tots who were well past their bedtime but stuck it out to the Grand Finale.
