Review: STEPHEN SONDHEIM SOCIETY STUDENT PERFORMER OF THE YEAR 2025, Sondheim Theatre
Photo credit: Ian Bowkett
An excited audience gathered at (appropriately) the Sondheim Theatre for the 17th annual Stephen Sondheim Society Student Performer of the Year final. SSSSPOTY – known as Spotty – has grown over the years from small beginnings. This year, there were 330 applicants who all submitted videos for the first round. Of these, 80 were shortlisted to audition in person in front of Musical Director Nigel Lilley and Society patron Jenna Russell. That process resulted in the 12 finalists selected to sing at the Sondheim Theatre.
The format of the final follows the request made by Stephen Sondheim that contestants should be asked to sing a song from a new musical as well as one of his own. The afternoon – very efficiently directed by the ever-reliable Hannah Chissick – was introduced by Craig Glenday, Chair of the Society, who then handed over to host Rosalie Craig after an opening chorus of ‘The Ballad of Sweeney Todd’, sung by all of the finalists – and the two reserves.
Each finalist got to sing their chosen Sondheim song and then a song from the New UK Musicals collective. A feast of musical theatre followed, with only one Sondheim song chosen twice: ‘Old Friends/Like It Was’ from Merrily We Roll Along. The other choices ranged from the familiar, such as ‘Not While I’m Around’ from Sweeney Todd to the unfairly neglected, like ‘Love, I Hear’ from A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum.
Also appearing in packed bill was the National Youth Music Theatre Ensemble, as well as the 2024 winner, Madeleine Morgan. A particular treat was the world premiere of a song from the cancelled third season of the wonderful Schmigadoon – which was to have been inspired by Sondheim. Host Rosalie Craig, who appeared as Bobby in the first gender-switched Company, sang ‘So Many People’ from Saturday Night before the Chair of Judges Jenna Russell announced the results.
The runner-up, from the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama, was Rigby Edwards, who had sung ‘Old Friends’ with a Liverpool inflection and great engagement with the audience. Our own five-star favourite was Georgia Blessit, so it was great to see that the judges (Jenna Russell, Darren Clark, Clare Foster, Nigel Harman, Catherine Jayes and Laura Pitt-Pulford) agreed and gave her the award of Student Performer of the Year. This gave her the chance to sing, once again, her stunning and heartfelt version of ‘Losing My Mind’ from Follies.
SSSSPOTY is a great event for Sondheim fans and all who love musical theatre: we can’t wait for next year, Besties!