9 to 5 the Musical

Having never seen the musical 9-5 before, or indeed the 1980 film the musical is based on, I was very interested to come along and see what it was all about.  The plot of Dolly Parton’s musical is simple. A group of downtrodden badly treated mainly female employees obtain workplace justice by getting rid of their autocratic, misogynist boss.

It is as well that the opening title song is infectious, since those that follow are not nearly as hummable. For someone, as I was, hearing most of them for the first time the art lies in putting it across the footlights in an appealing way.  Any unfamiliar melody takes time for our minds to assimilate. I am pleased to say this was well achieved. 

Much effort had been made by set designers Trevor Babbs and Tony Ransome to create a multi-purpose set with many large pieces of furniture on wheels which gave the possibility of swift changes.  However, although they looked splendid the tall cubes, which swivelled to depict different scenes/areas, reduced the playing area which ultimately caused problems when the large cast plus furniture were all on stage together. However, as I said the design was good.  Lighting on the second night had gremlins in at times.  Once or twice performers were singing in dark patches.  Costumes were mostly in period but there were a few anachronisms in the footwear department.

Performances from all principal performers were first-rate.  The three lead females Violet Newstead (Nicole Drury), Doralee Rhodes (Amy Cahill) and Judy Bernly (Shelley James), all portrayed strong individual characters bringing the audience into their stories with warmth and comedy.  Shelley’s portrayal of Judy was highly amusing. She has a good voice too. Nicole as Violet with great stage presence had some lovely songs which highlighted her strong singing voice. Amy as Doralee probably had the hardest job having to maintain a strong southern accent throughout the show, which she did exceptionally well and showed that she is an excellent actress with a great singing voice too. 

Their ‘sexist, egotistical, lying, hypocritical bigot’ of a boss, the sleazy Franklin Hart Jr, was played by Julian Hammond. He was outstanding and played the role suitably over the top and with definitely the right amount of humour, combining fine character acting with confident vocals. A strong character that the audience just loved to loath.  A most enjoyable performance. 

The love interest for Violet is Joe, well played by David Blaikie who brought this unconfident and shy character to life with a good singing voice well shown in a beautiful rendition of ‘Let Love Grow’ with Nicole.  DeeDee Doke as Roz, whose unrequited love for her boss, however unlikely, is revealed in the song ‘Heart to Hart’. She warmed into the song and by the end showed us her misguided passion. A humorous performance.

One of the benefits of this show for societies is that there is loads for the full ensemble to do.  The minor principal characters of; Dwayne (Harley Crisp), Josh Newstead (Rhys Steyn), Missy Hart (Mary Wade), Kathy (Katy Hugh), Maria (Kirsty Patterson), ‘the office lush’ Margaret (Mandy Morrish), Dick (Nigel Moorhouse), Bob Enright (Gerry Crowe) and Tinsworthy (Steve Doke) were all good, complimented each other and helped the story move along well.  The cast was completed by a very strong ensemble.  The singers were all very accomplished and there were some lovely harmonies.

Well done to all concerned, Director Mike Sharpe, Musical Director Kate Arnold and Associate Musical Director Adam Pallister. Overall this was a thoroughly enjoyable production from Campaign Amateur Theatre who should be proud of their show which certainly deserved the appreciative audience reaction it received.  

© NODA CIO. All rights reserved.