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The Wedding Singer, George Lawton Hall, Mossley
THE achievements of the youthful Mossley Operatic Society company are almost always best seen in their musical productions and rarely more so than here.

The combination of talents offers the most technically together show from Mossley in some time, which is saying a lot.

“The Wedding Singer” is one of the modern trend of broad rom-com shows majoring in unsubtle comedy and pleasant musical numbers.

Based on the hit, Eighties-inspired movie of the same name starring Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore, the stage show dispenses with some of the more cinematic elements and renders down scenes and characters.

The result is entertaining and often very funny, with specially written, mostly upbeat songs rather than the mid-Eighties pop of the film.

Such is Mossley’s reputation for strong, colourful musicals these days that director John Wood has managed to grab a cast from miles around, and mostly very good they are too. The combination of Dominic Penney as Robbie — the guy who sings at weddings — and Felicity Eccles as Julia, the waitress about to marry a banker, is a strong one, not perfect, but charming enough to carry the show.

Supporting characters are likewise: there is a little roughness in the acting and some of the jokes are buried, but there isn’t a single weak voice throughout the supporting cast (and some are truly excellent), so full credit to the likes of William Pretsell and Gary Jones-McCaw as Robbie’s band pals; Justine Moore as Holly, Julia’s friend, Sam Maurice as banker Glen, Mandy Mallinson as the feisty grannie, and Vikki Brunning, Nicola Mead and Simon Pickup.

But the entire ensemble is at the top of its game this time. The least of the performers is tightly drilled, the harmonies are terrific and the singing lusty.

The dancing (to Jones-McCaw’s lively, simple choreography) is tight and together and the show honestly soars in some of the bigger numbers, assisted by a simply terrific band under MD Paul Firth.