Calendar Girls The Musical

As many will know Calendar Girls The Musical is based on a true story and is an adaptation by Tim Firth of his stage play with music provided by Gary Barlow and was the perfect choice of show for Welwyn Thalians to perform.

Co-directed by Clive Dancey and Mandy Sayers, the opening number had the full house audience fully engaged with the characters - through both the laughter and tears.

The six main characters worked extremely well together portraying the deep friendships that develop in a small community. The two main characters – lifelong friends Chris (Lisa Fitzgerald) and Annie (Tammy Wall) worked particularly well together. Excellent casting here.

Lisa brought out Chris’s ebullient character to perfection as evidenced in her rendition of “Dare” at the end of Act 1. 

Tammy’s portrayal of Annie working through the illness, and then death from cancer of her husband John, was excellent and her quiet rendition of “Kilimanjaro” struck a chord with many in the audience. 

Mandy Sayers as single mum Cora brought much of the humour to the piece especially in her lead in the upbeat “Who Wants A Silent Night”. 

So too did Alison Downes as former Air Hostess Celia when she finally admitted not all was as nature intended in the number “So I’ve Had A Little Work Done”. 

Susan Read’s character of retired teacher Jessie brought a note of decorum to proceedings but with a twinkle in her eye and her rendition of “What Age Expects” elicited murmurs of agreement from many of the audience. Myself included!

Louise Bateman as Ruth enduring a loveless marriage was another strong character and her rendition of “My Russian Friend and I”, full of both pathos and humour in equal measure, was a delight. 

Strong support was given by Gill Shaw (Marie, the overbearing WI President), Annette Leishman (Wilson Tea), Colleen Town (Wilson Coffee), Avril Robinson (Brenda) and Sarah Gennoe (Lady C). 

The gentlemen too excelled themselves in their supporting roles each one demonstrating competent characterization – Adam Beckman (Rod, Chris’s husband), Peter Sayers (Colin, Jessie’s husband), Chris White (Dennis, Celia’s Husband), Vinnie Clemmens (photographer Lawrence) and especially Alex Ryde as John (Annie’s husband) in his portrayal of his battle with cancer. 

Mention must also be made of the three youngsters – Archie Davies (Danny, Chris’s Son), Emma Gilby (Jenny, Marie’s Daughter) and Kyle Hoy (Tommo, Cora’s Son). Jenny and Danny’s duet “Protect Me Less”, a teenage rant against their parent’s controlling ways, was another highlight of the evening. Well done to you both. Do be aware of shadow spots on the stage and try whenever possible to avoid them. This will come with experience and listening to your director. Emma and Kyle, you both need to project the voice more as there were moments when dialogue was missed because we could not hear you clearly. Again, this will come with practice and experience. However, for the most part, intonation patterns and musicality were good, and I shall be interested in watching how your careers develop. 

Chorus singing and movement was of a high standard and costumes appropriate. 

The three-piece band under Musical Director Davis Meek handled the various styles of music with consummate ease and gave excellent support to the singers. 

The set, a relatively simple design, was handled with ease by the company ensuring a seamless flow of action. 

Congratulations one and all – a very enjoyable production and great to see that the show was so well supported by a very appreciative local audience.  Thank you for inviting me and I look forward to seeing you all again in 2023.

Vicki Avery Noda Rep’ District 9

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