9 to 5

Unfortunately, the enduring memory of this show will be length of the first half (an hour and a half!)  This is not the company’s fault as they do, of course, have to follow the script.  However, it seems to me that at least 20 minutes could be cut from the first half without detracting from the story.

Having said that I think that Director Emma Sweeney did the best she could with a fairly anodyne script.  The company worked very hard to get some life into the show and, in the main, they succeeded.  I was not impressed by a lot of the songs, apart from the title song, the rest were not very memorable, the exception being Heart to Hart (see below) but that was down to the performer not the song!  MD Ian Southgate also did his best to bring some life into them.

This production was strongly performed with the three leading ladies all doing an excellent job with their characters.  Rachel Lane (Violet Newsted) did not actually look the age of the character she was playing but, these days, guessing the age of a lady is much more difficult that it was few years ago!  Her portrayal was strong and her singing excellent. Louise Byrne played the part that Dolly Parton took in the film (Doralee Rhodes) and she got the accent and the look just right.  She seemed have some difficulties with the upper register in her songs but I have seen Louise perform in the past and I understand that she was recovering from a throat infection, which would have made things difficult.  She didn’t hold back and her performance was strong and enjoyable.  The trio was completed by Juliet Thomas (Judy Burnly) who got the character just right and who has a lovely, if quiet, singing voice.

Martin Harris played the, rather unpleasant, Franklin Harris Jr well, with plenty of chauvinistic attitudes.  Dean Mobley gave a very creditable performance as Joe, the young accountant, but Mandi Threadgold-Smith takes the credit for the best performance in the show.  She nailed the character of the spinster assistant, Roz Keith, beautifully and her performance of the song Heart to Hart was simply outstanding and very funny.

I was not convinced that bringing the chorus onstage and having them stand in a ‘chorale’ type group, for so many of the songs, actually worked.  It seemed to disrupt the pace of the show but, as I don’t know the script, I am not sure if this is how it was required or whether that was the Directors choice.  The other thing that seemed to disrupt the pace was the constant need to move scenery on and off stage.  I would think that a standing set with various areas might have worked better and I have seen this done in this theatre (and by this company) in the past.  Having said that, the scene changes were effected, by the cast, as quickly and efficiently as they possibly could.  There were just a lot of them!

The ensemble worked very hard and the costume changes, for all the cast, were many and varied.  Given the restrictions back stage at this theatre it must have been quite frenzied at times!

The band were good, just about the right volume for this small theatre, the lighting was well designed and the cast worked well with the specials, making sure that they remained within the lit area.  Although the Principal actors were mic’d, it seemed that these were only used for the songs, which is fine in the small theatre, the dialogue can be easily heard when the cast project, which they all did well.

Overall the show was good and appreciated by the packed audience.  I just wish that it had not been quite so long!

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