There’s some “Hot Stuff” just landed at Leeds Grand Theatre.....! Ask any woman over a certain age an I’m sure they will remember the hype of the 1997 Sheffield-based movie of the same name, set amongst the cold hard backdrop of 1980s steelworks which were once a huge part of employment within the Sheffield district.
When Gaz (Gary Lucy) and his mates, including best mate Dave aka “Fat Dave” (Kai Owen) are struggling with unemployment following the closure of the steelworks (having been born into the era when a job for life meant just that) faced with signing on the dole plus regular visits to the Job Club; after seeing the local Working Men’s Club becoming a women’s only club for one night when the touring group The Chippendales - a group of muscly six-pack owning male strippers give the Sheffield ladies a treat for their money, Gaz gets the brainwave to put on his own strip group for the evening, desperate to raise much needed income. Gaz is currently at risk of losing contact with his teenage son Nathan (Fraser Kelly), his wife having a Court Summons against him following unpaid Child Maintenance, and when attempts “nicking” (that’s “stealing” to non Northern readers!) steel girders from the run-down derelict steelworks in order to raise a few quid, Gaz sees getting his kit off as the best way to get some cold hard cash.
The fun really starts when Gaz, Dave along with their former foreman Gerald (Andrew Dunn) and a few others (and son Nathan roped in to being their Manager) hold open auditions for additional blokes to join their strip troupe. Amongst the selected there’s Horse (Louis Emerick) - who’s “more Shetland than Shire” if you get my drift...an ageing arthritic guy who may not be so stable on his feet but sure has the hip action to a tee (partly due to his shaky troublesome hip!), loner and suicidal Lomper (Joe Gill) and Guy (“Gentleman....the lunchbox has landed!”) - an openly gay young male who’s trade secret his his more-than-adequate anatomy.
What I love about Simon Beaufoy’s award winning play is that it stays true to the original 1997 movie, set in the 1980s, rather than the Americanised Musical. This is no surprise however since Beaufoy also wrote the film screenplay. But having seen both the musical version and the play version, I much prefer the play - The Full Monty wouldn’t be The Full Monty without it being set in Sheffield!
Robert Jones' stunning stage set features as the production's frame - perfectly recapturing the derelict steelworks set amongst the backdrop of 1980s industrial city of Sheffield - complete with broken windows, “Margaret” (the nickname given by the workers to the cold heavy crane used to move steel) - there were so many intricate details to this stunning set I often found my eyes wondered from the cast to the steel backdrop - but don’t worry ladies I was soon brought back round whenever the guys started to take any items of clothing off!
The six guys - who later really do go all the way ie The Full Monty - work perfectly in sync with each other, it’s impossible to single out an individual performer however I found I had a certain soft spot for Louis Emerick as the lovable Horse. I struggled with Gary Lucy’s so-called Sheffield accent which kept slipping throughout - at times so much so I struggled to tell what he was saying, but then again who goes to see this show for the dialect?! Maybe when the tour hits Sheffield Lucy needs to come live with me for the weeks' run (in Sheffield obviously) so that I can teach him the lingo?! Eye-candy-wise there’s a guy for women of all ages - with the diamonds in the rough being Lucy and Redmond for me.
With a host of well-loved 80s tunes featuring in the background plus the hit tunes featured in the original movie - from Hot Chocolate’s “You Sexy Thing”, to Irene Cara’s “Flashdance” and of course Tom Jones’ “You Can Leave Your Hat On” plus recreating the iconic film scenes beautifully (my ultimate favourite scene - other than the final scene of course - being the impromptu dance rehearsal in the dole queue!) - The Full Monty is the ultimate girls night out! Not surprising that ticket sales do so well - be sure to capture this cult classic on tour!
Reviewer - Lottie Davis-Browne
on - 25/3/19
No comments:
Post a Comment