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“Red, yellow, green, brown, scarlet, black, ocher, peach, ruby, olive, violet, fawn,” and a whole rainbow of styles characterized Westfield High School’s production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. As the song says “we’ve read the book and you come at on top,” and Westfield Theatre certainly did with their energizing dance numbers, vivacious singing, and well-practiced acting.

Written by Andrew Lloyd Webber with lyrics by Tim Rice, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat is mostly sung-through because of its lack of dialogue and a ‘megamix’ of diverse music styles from multiple time periods. This musical, in its full format, was recorded in 1974 and opened on Broadway in 1982 with a plethora of major revivals and a 1999 straight-to-video film. The plotline stems from the Hebrew Bible’s Book of Genesis with Joseph’s “coat of many colors,” where Joseph is sold into slavery by his jealous brothers and after a few mishaps, becomes the most powerful man in Egypt.

Kevin Clay, who played the part of Joseph, had a harmonious and fluid voice that pulled you on a rollercoaster of glamour, vulnerability, and strength. His maturation through the show was extremely “colorful” and allowed him to be more relatable as the show continued on. Colby Dezelick, who acted as Levi and the Pharaoh, as well as choreographed and tangoed to “Those Canaan Days,” had great stage presence with his comic reactions and timings. His singing and dancing abilities were highlights of the enchanting musical, from there intricacies to gracefulness. The pleasant feelings of the ensembles encouraged many to enjoy and involve themselves in the funky dance numbers and fun singing. The Brothers were especially humorous. Although each had their own separate character, they blended well – as if they were all a real family.

All technical aspects of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat were syncopated to perfection. The light changes were concealed by the action on stage, so they were almost melodic. Each light represented the style of music each song represented and added to the effect of it all. The orchestra seemed very aware of all that was going on onstage which allowed them to keep in rhythm. Costumes were flawless, in both fashioning appropriate styles to each time period and depicting characters attractively. Out of the 655 pieces costumes and accessories, not one was unsuitable, and each was made with utmost craftsmanship. The choreographed pieces, formulated since August of 2010 by Colby Dezelick and Avery Hobbs, were swift and fun pulling the show together as one happy cornucopia of music and theater.

Westfield High School’s Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat was wonderfully enjoyable and at the end, had many saying “Joseph, we’ll never forget you.” The familial feel and effort of the cast and crew represents the real art of all theater’s vigor.

by Shayla Dhingra of Briar Woods High School

Photo Gallery

Kevin Clay	Row 1 (kneeling) Max Ehrlich, Sarah Bowden, Connor Scudder, Corinne Holland, Zoe Tippl, Nick Burroughs Row 2 (standing) Allie Koenigsberg, Jake Erhlich, Breana Hobbs, Ozzy Tirmizi, Trevor Knickerbocker, Maggie Mitchell, Ben Nelms, Madeleine Bloxam Back Row Chaz Coffin, Nicole Vinson, Colby Dezelick, Avery Hobbs, Rachel Shirley, Mitchell Buckley, Adam Thomas, Ally Geary, Max Ehrlich
Allie Koenigsberg, Maggie Mitchell, Rachel Shirley, Sarah Bowden, Avery Hobbs, Zoe Tippl, Colby Dezelick, Kevin Clay, Madeleine Bloxam, Corinne Holland, Breana Hobbs, Ally Geary, Nicole Vinson	Row 1 (bottom) Mitchell Buckley, Colby Dezelick, Chaz Coffin, Adam Thomas Row 2 (top) Ben Nelms, Connor Scudder, Ozzy Tirmizi, Trevor Knickerbocker, Max Ehrlich, Nick Burroughs, Jake Ehrlich
Adam Thomas, Chaz Coffin, Nicole Vinson, Jake Ehrlich, Sunny Vinsavich, Max Ehrlich, Sarah Bowden, Corinne Holland, Colby Dezelick, Mitchell Buckley, Michelle Lerch, Avery Hobbs, Ben Nelms, Ozzy Tirmizi

Photos by Charlie Gunn