Just after 7.30pm the lights dimmed and an audience of predominantly highly charged females heard the first line of the stage production of The Full Monty booming from backstage, ‘Turn your mobiles off but keep your knickers on!’ To cheers and whoops of delight the show started and for everyone who saw the film back in 1997 and who fell in love with the six unemployed northern steelworkers, anticipation was high that this was going to be another very enjoyable experience. The energy in the Liverpool Empire was electric from the outset and the audience simmered in anticipation of the spectacular, big reveal finale.
Based on his original screenplay for the film, Simon Beaufoy has adapted it for the stage and I’d guess most of the audience, like me, had seen and enjoyed the 1997 BAFTA-winning film starring Robert Carlyle and remembered the gist of it, i.e. unemployment, dodgy dance moves in a Dole queue, the Hot Chocolate track, ‘You Sexy Thing’ and of course the big reveal at the end. Who would ever have thought a film which dealt with issues such as post Thatcher Recession, job losses, poverty, attempted suicide and one man’s desperate, but somewhat misguided attempts to see his son would become one of the most well-loved, feel good successes of all time? And that those audiences would be flocking in to see a stage production of the same name 22 years later?
I was pleased that the storyline had been translated so well to the stage with the key moments, characters and hit songs all included. Surprisingly, using only one set with crates, oil drums and dodgy electrics and a backdrop of a recreated shell of the disused steelworks, (soon to be pulled down to be turned into luxury canalside flats) worked well with various props interspersed as necessary throughout. Throughout the show, clever lighting and signs transformed the stage into a Job Centre, a nightclub, a Conservative Club and a Police Station.
The first half introduces us to the main characters, six unemployed, unlikely comrades who become firm friends by the end of the piece, namely loveable rascal Gaz (Gary Lucy), overweight Dave (Kai Owen), uptight Gerald (Andrew Dunn), arthritic yet spritely Horse (Louis Emerick), lonely Lomper (Joe Gill) and Guy (James Redmond).
TV favourite Gary Lucy’s first entrance brought a whoop of delight and expectation from the 95% female audience and Louis Emerick’s arrival exuded a heartfelt recognition of one of ‘Liverpool’s own’. His comical rendition of Horse brought squeals of side-splitting laughter and delight notwithstanding that he had the least attractive underwear to wear on stage in the shape of well-worn, greying long johns which had seen better days judging by the holes in them.
Set in Sheffield, Gaz, a self-assured likely lad decides to put together a group of male strippers to make some easy money and drags his unlikely accomplices into his plan. The actors gelled well and brought an easy, natural affinity to the script and gleefully embraced every second of their characters’ journey from steel workers to sex gods as part of their disparate strip troupe ‘Buns of Steel’.
Simon Beaufoy has managed to retain the warmth of the characterisation and camaraderie that the men find in each other’s company and a lot of his jokes from the original film, with a cast who make it enjoyably fresh.
Gary Lucy as Gaz, the father desperately trying to maintain his relationship with his son Nathan, is touching at times but I felt his performance was slightly let down by his Sheffield accent which was at times difficult to understand thus detracting from the story as some of the lines where missed or unintelligible.
I had forgotten the attempted suicide scene from the film and in light of recent news broadcasts of similar events it seemed slightly out of place in the mainly comical script. The somewhat hushed audience at this part of the performance also seemed to feel the awkwardness of the scene but glad to say it was soon forgotten as the rib-tickling script progressed.
Each of the characters had their own back story or in Guy's case, an imposing front story in his well-stocked undies, of a prosthetic penis which brought a smile to everyone’s face. As well as revealing their private lives, they eventually display their privates, too.
Iconic moments from the film are included, including the cling film diet scene, the sunbed tanning at home, and of course dancing in the Dole queue. The pace really picks up in the second half, as they rehearse for their performance.
The story has the added pleasure of both honesty and integrity with far more than just a cheap thrill. The Full Monty tackles tough subjects more relevant today than ever before such as unemployment, poverty, sexuality, body image and importantly in todays’ media-influenced world, mental health. A loud, iconic soundtrack ranging from Bowie and Van Halen to Steve Harley and Tom Jones gave the whole production an edgy, modern feel. With on-stage smoking, swearing and in one particularly funny scene, one of the female cast members urinating, man-style, up against a wall, very northern humour demonstrating that the worse things get, the better the jokes, gave way to any suggestion of sentimental cheesiness.
Overall, the chemistry and comic timing between the male cast is spot on. The production’s female members also bring to light the other side of life, portraying the challenging journeys they face in order to stand by their men and how they eventually take their hats off to them all.
Of course, what the 95% female audience were really waiting for is the big reveal of male nudity at the end. It doesn’t disappoint, and after the cast ripping off their tops and throwing them to the front stalls, the heartening finale received a standing ovation. The audience had spontaneously clapped and joined in throughout the performance and the enjoyment on their faces as they left the theatre couldn’t be denied.
It is definitely a play for fans of the film but can be equally enjoyed by first-timers too. In fact my companion said he enjoyed it more than the film.
A lot of people may be going to see the final scene of the play, (the men stripping off on stage) but the journey and the story they relay on the way to the finale is something that catches one’s attention from the very beginning. It was a very enjoyable production and well worth the accolade of ‘Winner of the UK Theatre Award for Best Touring Production’.
Reviewer - Anne Pritchard
on - 18/3/19
No comments:
Post a Comment