9 to 5

My first show visit of 2025 took me back to Rhiwbina Memorial Hall to watch one of my favourite musicals: 9 to 5.  It’s a show I know very well having directed and been in different productions of it and even winning a NODA award myself along the way!

The musical is based on the 1980s movie of the same name and features music and lyrics by Dolly Parton.  It follows three women, Violet, Doralee and Judy who work together for a company presided over by their lecherous boss, Franklin Hart.

Lesley Beckett played Violet.  She had a good character: dry and witty, with an added splash of sass.  She performed well in the musical numbers.

Doralee was played by Amy Perry.  The character is based on Dolly Parton and Amy did a good job of bringing this character to life with a nice accent and some very loud costumes!

Becki Holder played Judy.  She started the show as the timid, new girl in the office and grew into a stronger, more confident Judy by the end of the production. 

The trio of ladies worked well together to tell the story and they led the production well.

Their sexist, egotistical, lying, hypocritical bigot of a boss was played by Richard Thomas.  Richard gave a strong performance, full of character; he certainly appeared to be enjoying himself!

Bethan Horwood played Roz, Mr Hart’s assistant.  She had a good character and had the audience roaring with laughter during the musical number ‘Heart to Hart.’

Aled Jones-Pritchard was great as Joe, the accountant who is in love with Violet.  His character was spot on and his duet with Lesley: ‘Let Love Grow’ was one of the highlights of this production for me.

The remaining named characters, (too many to mention), all gave good performances and added value to the production.  The ensemble and the dancers all performed well.

The choreography was well delivered and appropriate for the size of the cast. 

The set was well constructed and gave the characters a chance to use the entirety of the stage.

I always love hearing a live band but occasionally they overpowered the singing, particularly in the larger numbers featuring the ensemble which was a shame as I’m sure their harmonies were lovely!  They just weren’t audible.  There were also some mismatches in tempo which did make it difficult for the cast on stage.

It is my belief that the role of a NODA rep is to promote the highest standards within amateur theatre and so my comments are always designed to provide feedback and guidance for future productions.

Thank you for your invitation and I look forward to seeing you more throughout the year.

 

 

The views in this report are solely of the author.

© NODA CIO. All rights reserved.