When Haslemere Players’ Legally Blonde was scheduled for March 2020, little did anyone dream Covid would delay it for 19 months.

With some people no longer available they had to re-cast and get back in the swing of the intricate dance routines. But this fantastic show was well worth waiting for.

Opening night came on the 20th anniversary of the release of the film which spawned the show. With music and lyrics by Laurence O’Keefe and Neil Benjamin, it is a humdinger of a musical centred on Elle Woods, a fashionable American sorority queen dumped by her boyfriend.

She has it all but wants to be a wife and feels one thing stopped him proposing – she is too blonde. Elle gets into Harvard, determined to win him back, befriends a feisty trio of cheerleaders and defies expectations while staying true to herself.

Fiona McGregor pulled off a big challenge in her directorial debut. With Justin Luke wielding the baton they produced a stonking show which sizzled from beginning to end. Choreographers Debra Allen, Robyn Davies, Emma Lumb and Kim Seymour produced some outstanding dancing, the singing was terrific, the sets imaginative and the costumes superb.

Becca McGregor was amazing as Elle. Love interest Emmett was in the capable hands of Arran Treacher-Evans. Her sorority sisters were charmingly played by Hannah Lucas, Emma Lumb and Verity Foster.

The Players took a risk, attempting a difficult musical which was certainly not a run-of-the-mill choice. They should be very proud that the result was an exceptionally professional show in every sense of the word.

Fay Foster