Calamity Jane

Calamity Jane... a musical staged and performed by St Ambrose Players at St Ambrose Halls 4 All, Moss Lane Leyland on Friday, 5th June 2026.

Hold on to those Stetsons folks … the Deadwood Stage just rolled into Leyland and what a “whip‑crack‑away” of a time we all had! Calamity Jane can outrun and outshoot any man in town… except the infamous Wild Bill Hickok. But, when there’s a mix‑up at the local saloon, Calamity is determined to save the day and travels to Chicago to bring the celebrated actress Adelaide Adams back to Deadwood. However, despite her best intentions, she actually returns with Adelaide’s maid, Katie Brown. When Katie confesses she isn’t the star they were expecting, Calamity steps in once more to convince the townsfolk to give her a chance. Katie soon wins the heart of every man in town, including Lieutenant Danny Gilmartin — the very man Calamity herself has her eye on! Encouraged by Katie, Calamity sheds her tomboy persona and transforms into a beautiful woman for the Fort ball. It’s there that she realises that Katie and Danny are in love and after a few mishaps, Calamity overcomes her jealousy, only to discover that her heart actually belongs to someone else entirely!

Production Team ... Sarah White (Director), Beth Wharton (Assistant Director), Judith Oakes (Musical Director) and Hannah Thurston (Choreographer) were the talented team chosen to bring this classic western musical back to the Leyland stage. In her programme notes, Sarah mentions being inspired by the recent 2025 professional tour that she saw — and what a great decision that turned out to be. The team cast superbly!  From the moment those curtains parted, the performers looked happy, engaged, well‑rehearsed, and ready for the challenges ahead. Judith and her band accompanied rather than competed with the singers, allowing for some lovely renditions of songs along with some great harmonies from this iconic songbook. The choreography was simple, period‑appropriate which blended beautifully with the style of the show. Congratulations to the entire production team — be very proud, each and all!

Cast ...
Kimberley Barker – ‘Calamity Jane’; Paul Regan – ‘Wild Bill Hickok’; Rachel French – ‘Katie Brown’ Adam G Smith – ‘Lt D Gilmartin’; Will Perrin – ‘Francis Fryer’; Molly Houghton – ‘Susan’ Stephen Barnes – ‘Henry Miller’; Anna Beaumont – ‘Adelaide Adams’; Jonny Holmes – ‘Joe’; Alan Livesley – ‘Doc & The Colonel’; Adam Cruickshank – ‘Hank’; Oliver Grindrod – ‘Pete’ Kieron Alami – ‘Rattlesnake’
Saloon Girls: Samantha Fogg, Jenny Harbottle, Rachael Fraser‑Bourne & Anna Beaumont Ensemble: Louise Taylor, Alison Griffiths‑Barnes, Anna O’Hanlon, Tabitha Mossley, Mia Buchanan
Pit Choir: Ian Mossley, Nathan Benson, Ellie Clayton, Nick Davis, Kath Green, Nicola Preston, Kieran Smith, Mandy Stanton, Tony Stevens, Sheridan Zabel

Calamity Jane is one of my all‑time favourite musicals — it really has stood the test of time! There are some amazing characters to create and some epic songs to be sung and St Ambrose did it proud.  As is the norm in my show reports, this is where I “stick the old neck out” and select MY favourites. You’ll no doubt have your own, but these are mine…  SHOWSTEALER ... I toyed with two performers who I simply couldn’t separate — and neither could the musical, as they end up together! Calamity Jane and Wild Bill Hickok, played, with great aplomb, by Kimberley Barker and Paul Regan. I’m leaning toward Paul simply because I believe that this was the best performance I’ve ever seen Paul give. He looked completely at ease, with a natural swagger that made his character totally believable. His rendition of one of my favourite musical numbers, ‘Higher Than a Hawk’, was outstanding... be very proud, Paul.  Kim’s Calamity was equally impressive — confident, energetic, great accent, great mannerisms. Individually excellent and terrific together. Be very proud, both of you. It then became an almost impossible task to say someone was better than someone else, simply because everyone on that stage just gave us their all. Rachel and Adam created two lovely characters in Katie Brown and Danny Gilmartin; Will and Molly were equally strong as Francis Fryer and Susan... but it was the teamwork and the obvious hard work from everyone that paid off and made the production the success it obviously was. A great show, appreciated by everyone present.

Staging & Tech ... once again, those staging wizards from St Ambrose delivered another wonderful backdrop for this ‘wild west classic’. St Ambrose are blessed with this well‑established team of set builders and painters: Graham Forrest and Ali Vardy (Stage Managers), Martin Dempsey, Paul Gregson, Gordon Manley (Set Builders/Stage Crew), and Graham Forrest and Paul Gregson (Scenic Artists/Stage Crew). The set remained in place for all of the production — a slatted timber painted backdrop with authentically painted wagon wheels. Additional furniture created Calam’s cabin, the Chicago dressing room, and the Fort for the dance. Everything looked authentic and allowed the show to flow smoothly.  Sound & Lighting were in the capable hands of David Smith and Stephen Porter respectively. Halls 4 All has historically been a tricky venue for sound, but show by show we’re seeing or should I say hearing real improvement. A moment that stood out was at the end of one number — possibly Higher Than a Hawk — the drummer created this delicate tinkling effect on the cymbals which was crystal clear, we wouldn’t have heard that a few years ago. Lighting was strong throughout, and together, sound and lighting enhanced the production enormously.

The Band .... expertly led by Judith Oakes (Musical Director), with Janet Hitchen, Linda Scott, Joe Threlfall, Nick Wood and Ann Vosper. Their support for the actors — soloists and chorus alike were noticeable and appreciated. Band levels have also been an issue in the past, but this time they were almost perfect, no doubt helped by the improvements in sound.

Costumes ... excellent quality, period‑appropriate, and hugely enhancing to the production. Hired from ‘The Boyz Theatre Costumes’ and managed by Sarah White and Beth Wharton.

Props ... first‑class props and stage furniture, all appropriate and effective. Hired from ‘Junction 4 Productions’ and looked after by Siobhan Edge and Sarah White.

Thank you so much for the invite. Susan and I thoroughly enjoyed our evening — as, I suspect, the entire audience did if the applause throughout and at the final bows was anything to go by. Already looking forward to ‘Ladies Day’ in September... thanks again for a great night!

Stay safe, keep well…
‘Stronger Together’

Jim Briscoe
NODA NW
District 6 Rep

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