Made in Dagenham

The face of labour relations changed when in 1968 the 187 Ford Dagenham women sewing machinists protested against unequal treatment of skill levels.  This soon turned into the more general complaint about equal pay for women and men and it eventually resulted in the Equal Pay Act of 1970.

The musical grasps the entire story line, from the shop floor, to the management office, the foreign owner and the trials and tribulations of the Labour Party behind the scenes. There is comedy but the musical also takes us into the serious aspects of strike action and the moving portrayal of fractured relationships.

The machine girls were led initially by ‘foul mouthed Beryl’ played with great flavour in language and presence by Susannah Clapcott. We are left in no doubt what it was like working in the shop floor conditions of the 1960s, with a strong rendition of ‘Busy Women’ followed equally as strong by the title song ‘Made in Dagenham, by the factory men.

When the girls vote to go on strike the eventual impact this has on 5000 men that are laid off, is felt no more so than by Rita O’Grady (Leonie Airlie) and ‘Eddie O’Grady’ (Ryan Frost) and their two youngsters ‘Graham’ and ‘Sharon’ (Isaac Quinn/Iris Thomas). The real family tension is felt by the audience. I was totally absorbed in Ryan Frost’s performance of ‘The Letter’ which was delivered with great feeling and also the final speech leading to ‘Stand Up’ by Leonie was another highlight.

Stuart Archer played the out of touch Prime Minister Harold Wilson and he was immediately recognisable. He gave us some amusing moments especially in the number ‘Always a Problem’ with his Aides. Diane Maughan provided a sterling ‘Barbara Castle’ with great presence and characterisation and her number ‘Ideal World’ was excellent. Another challenging number carried off extremely well was the opening number of Act 2, ‘This is ‘America’ led very well by Gary Brown as ‘Mr Tooley.’  ‘Darren Lewis’ as ’Cortina Man’ made the most of the number ‘Cortina’.

The show is packed with great musical numbers and impressive performances were also provided by ‘Emily Pearce’ as ‘Clare’ and ‘Lynne Lambert’ as ‘Connie.’ The scene following Connie’s death with ‘Monty’ played by Mark Stenton was sensitively handled. ‘Eloise Barber’ as ‘Sandra’ and ‘Amy Cowan’ as ‘Cass’ also gave good support. 

‘The Management’ led by ‘Mr Hopkins’ (Peter Biggers) depicted well how we the audience imagine the whole controversy was handled at the time and I salute the portrayal of ‘Lisa Hopkins’ by Claire Teasdale who offered far more than her husband gave her credit for.

The score was very well complimented by the band. The volume could have been lowered a little particularly in the opening scene with the children and also during some of the ‘scene change music’ in a couple of instances. Perhaps this has more to do with the technical side rather than the band. The company numbers throughout the show were all impressive. The set provided the right atmosphere enhanced by the 1960s attire and hairstyles. The lighting, had some well controlled follow spots.

As Director ‘Claire Barber’ as well as the entire production team should be delighted with the result and the deserved full houses they received. The audience demonstrated their appreciation and passion for the performance and rose to their feet for the rousing finale ‘Stand Up.’

Thank you to you all for putting on a brilliant musical.

© NODA CIO. All rights reserved.