Another local group takes up the challenge of a Stephen Sondheim musical. How do they fare? To quote from another of his shows – “It’s a hit. A palpable hit!”. This production oozes quality, makes Sondheim accessible and should not be missed.

Company, a plotless musical, is created from a collection of short stories, woven around Bobby and his married friends. It takes a cynical look at marriage and relationships.

The production’s simple staging, cubed boxes for flexible furniture and mime for props, allows the audience to focus on performances. A trio of musicians, sufficient to the needs of the show, never swamp the lyrics – there is total clarity throughout. Graham Brown’s choreography and Claire Lewis’s direction contain clever innovations.

The cast’s performances resemble a casket of jewels, every one polished and bedazzling.

Nathan Charman is a fine Bobby, climaxing with the great anthem “Being Alive”. Other pinnacles scaled include Erica Thornton’s “Not Getting Married”, a notoriously difficult numbers that she effortlessly delivers and “Ladies Who Lunch”, on which Tania Newton adds her personal stamp.

For comedy there is Louis Craig’s facial expression when stoned and Martha Perrin is priceless as the hopelessly dumb, naive April.

BLT - thanks for your Company.