Made in Dagenham

It is difficult for even those of us who were young during those times to remember the social values that were then normal with women being treated as inferior.  How strange it must seem for the young people of today.  This production captured so well the feeling of those times and created on stage a compelling show.  All the characters had been well cast with the actors absorbing the character they were playing and drawing us into the story.  There were some wonderful moments of banter in the machine shop and it was interesting to watch the changing dynamics of the various relationships as the industrial action gained strength.  The girls of the machine room who had been considered unskilled and only worthy of earning pin money gained a voice and became a force to be reckoned with.  Rita, the wife, and mother, who initially was unhappy about taking the lead found her strength, much to the chagrin of her husband, both excellent performances.  The dynamics of that relationship shifted and all this was performed in such a believable way.   There were lovely natural performances from the young people playing the children Graham and Sharon.   A good relationship with the parents was in evidence showing the changes in response to changing circumstance.  The script gives wonderful opportunities for comedy, none more so than with Harold Wilson and Barbara Castle.  A touch of nostalgia was felt for those days when politics appeared to be more fun.  There were so many excellent performances in this superbly written show. It is very difficult to find any shortcomings with "Made in Dagenham".  The dialogue, so full of earthy humour, was well delivered.  The band was superb and the singing also but it might have been worth considering placing the band upstage as words were at times lost in the musical numbers  The staging was good with no break in the flow.  Setting the kitchen stage right and the office of Harold Wilson stage left enabled the scene changes to be smooth.  Sound and lighting were good.  There were some wonderfully choreographed numbers which had clearly been well rehearsed and were great fun.  

The costumes must have been the cause of many nostalgic moments for those of us who were around at that time.  The white boots and the mini skirts looked most authentic.  There was evidence of good teamwork and commitment from everyone involved with this show.  

This was an excellent production and was so much enjoyed by the audience 

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