Abby theatre presents classic pop feast

The glitzy and glamorous British are invading the Abbey Musical Theatre stage as a new musical comes to town.

British Invasion features pop hits from The Beatles to Elton John to Adele and Duffy.

Director Ian Harman said he wanted to capture the essence of some truly British moments in history and incorporate them into a full-blown musical production in Palmerston North.

The British music woven throughout the show was a ‘‘tribute to some really great music in our history’’.

‘‘I just tried to inject British iconography into the numbers and give them a British twist.’’

He said the two-hour long show started with The Beatles in the 60s and danced its way to glitzy and glamorous modern-day British pop.

‘‘It’s just fun and we have red, white and blue everywhere and Union Jacks for Africa,’’ Harman said.

Twenty-two cast members and 17 crew members have been involved in pulling together the musical.

British Invasion is on at The Auditorium, Centennial Drive, until December 5. The Fire Service is reassuring Ngahere Park residents its ability to fight fires in the area will not be compromised by weight restrictions on their access bridge.

Resident Kevin Low told Palmerston North City councillors on Monday that if the weight restriction on the one-lane bridge was lowered to 22 tonnes, firefighting would be affected.

The bridge has a 39-tonne limit, below the usual 44 tonnes, but investigations into strengthening it have shown the restriction should probably be lowered further.

Low said a 14,000-litre water truck would not be able to cross to assist with firefighting, and neither would a fire tender, leaving up to 250 residents at risk.

But Fire Service senior communications adviser Peter Riordan said all of Palmerston North and Milson’s fire appliances except one would be able to use the bridge, even if the weight restriction was 22 tonnes or lower.

The exception was a type-three appliance that carried a 45-foot ladder used for high-rise fires. It would not be sent to a rural area anyway.

Councillors have supported bridge strengthening at a likely cost of $261,000.

Finance and performance committee chairwoman Susan Baty and councillor Annette Nixon both said they believed the bridge strengthening was needed, and the possible fire risk had not swayed their views.

‘‘I support it because the level of service we are providing people there has been reduced.’’

Nixon said development at Ngahere Park, future building and heavy vehicles needing access all contributed to the need to bring the bridge up to standard, as well as the needs of forestry operations.