PALS

PALS was written by the very talented Artistic Director of CADOS Mark Jones in remembrance of the hundredth anniversary of the Battle of the Somme which took place in 1916 during World War 1. The story centers on the lives of four friends from Chorley who joined the Army and went off to war together, he looks at all aspects of their lives leading up to joining the army, what happened to them during the battle and the after effects of this catastrophic event. Mark undertook a great deal of research looking at life and local news stories during the early twentieth century and incorporated this information into the stories of his characters in the play.

The cast was made up of a group of very talented actors who without exception produced very good characterisations and performances, there were no weak links, however to be constructive maybe some of the cast could look at their projection as although dialogue could generally be heard you had to listen carefully on occasions to follow this very important story. At the beginning of the play we meet a man called Tom (Barry Callander) who is looking back to the time when he undertook a school history project which changed his outlook on life. We then meet Tom as a young man played by Max Porter who has been sent by his teacher to interview an elderly cantankerous old man in his nineties living in a Nursing Home called Bill superbly played by Dave Reid.  Bill was a soldier during the First World War and at first he doesn’t want to talk to Tom, he then changes his mind and decides there is a need to tell the story about his life and the lives of his three PALS who died in the battle before it is too late. Over the course of three days he tells Tom all about the four PALS, Young Bill – Ryan Norse (Bill’s younger self) James- Danny Almond, Joseph- Robert Walsh and George -Chris Franic. He tells him the story of how he met his wife Sarah- Katie Waller and all about his life and his friends lives, their wives and girlfriends and the problems they faced in life, The Actors in these other important roles included Jackie Green as Polly, Carla Martland as Nellie, Sam Quinn as Ellen, and Becky Chamberlain as Daisy. Alan Levesley was busy as Mr Duxbury, Howard and the Police Officer and there were two nice cameo roles from Charli Bradbury as the nurse and Cathy Hurley as Doris.

The staging was very atmospheric with very good scenery, sound, lighting and the whole of the stage area was used efficiently, technical effects were excellent especially when the soldiers were in the trenches and when they went over the top and we saw how horrific life and death was in the trenches, also adding to the authenticity and feel of the play were some splendid costumes.
This play was an outstanding, powerful, poignant, thought provoking piece of theatre which expressed and highlighted the bravery and sacrifice of ordinary men and women during the First World War, the effects on their lives and the long lasting consequences, which sometimes had repercussions for the rest of their lives. It also touched on the women’s movement and their fight for women’s rights and about the plight of conscientious objectors. It taught us that people’s lives in the early twentieth century in many ways were much like our own as they had the same problems and relationships as we have today. Well done to Author and Director Mark Jones, Producer Rebecca Dickinson and to all involved in this production.
 

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