The latest summer concert by Maria Jagusz and MJ-UK surpassed even their own exemplary standards; writes Stuart Russell

As a new musical, “The Clockmaker’s Daughter” had little intrinsic box office appeal and there was a commercial risk in staging it.

However, the publicity was organised by StageSmart, a new company run by Iwan Lewis, one of Maria’s alumni. The result was three “sold out” performances!

The narrative is a fairy story, a re-working of the possessive father theme. A clockmaker in a nineteenth century Irish town is so distraught at his wife’s death that he makes a clockwork woman to replace her. The figure comes to life and falls in love with a young man from the village. The resultant tragedy is predictable.

Maria must be delighted that a show with a huge array of performers was cast almost exclusively from her proteges.

The principals couldn’t be faulted and both the choral singing and the choreography were of an exceptional standard.

Maria’s direction was magical. In all her productions she shows both a clarity of dramatic vision and a certainty of touch.

But all aspects of the production - the music, the lighting, the set, the costumes - were of the high professional standard we have come to expect from MJ-UK.

The final impression was of a compelling theatrical event, thanks to the slickness of the writing, the performance of the cast, the directorial genius of Maria, and the promotional skills of StageSmart.