'Calendar Girls' started life in 2003 as a British comedy film directed by Nigel Cole, based on a screenplay by Tim Firth and Juliette Towhidi. It tells the true story of a group of middle-aged Yorkshire women who produced a nude calendar to raise money for Leukaemia Research (now Blood Cancer UK) under the auspices of the Women's Institutes in April 1999 after the husband of one of their members dies from cancer. The calendar raised more than a few eyebrows at the time but more importantly to date it has raised over £3 million for the cause!
For some reason, best known to those involved, the musical originally premiered as 'The Girls' in 2016, before being renamed 'Calendar Girls' for the UK tour in 2017. The musical was a collaboration between Gary Barlow and Tim Firth. The inclusion of Tim Firth in the musical is an important factor because it guaranteed a very close alignment to the original and very successful play version, if it ain't break don’t break it.
The current tour is publicised as a new production with a revised score, and these are not the only new aspects to the production. Staging is completely changed and there are significantly fewer characters which means production as a whole has a very different feel to it. Staging had previously been a very grand backdrop of the Yorkshire Dales with props coming on and off to set the differing scenes. The revised staging is a very impressive looking interior of the hall where the WI meetings take place. Impressive if you are seated in the centre of the auditorium, not so impressive if you are sat stage left as there is a kitchen area that I had absolutely no view of that is used on several occasions. Disappointing that in a professional production no thought was really given to audience sight lines. Keeping everything “interior” also meant the action felt very one dimensional, hard to imagine how the cast were so in love with Yorkshire if all we saw was the inside of a community hall. The first act also has a very different feel to the original production. Songs have been removed '(Yorkshire', probably due to the lack of an ensemble) or chopped around. Very slightly 'Almost' is broken into three pieces and it makes it very difficult for the actor and audience to pick up the pieces and to fully appreciate and build pathos for John's health demise. 'The Flowers Of Yorkshire' seemed to be misplaced in this version and didn’t get the reaction it truly deserves. Overall Act 1 felt rushed with little time to really establish characters and relationships. It was almost like a concert version of the original. Act 2 felt more enjoyable and allowed us to really see the characters come to life. However, the lack of ensemble, notably the children, resulted in a few holes plot wise. It's unclear in this version why Chris suddenly decides to abandon her support for her best friend Annie, a key moment between the friends, due to issues with her son. In the original we see her son suspended from school, ending his chances, and her dream of him being head boy. It meant that you were left with the feeling that reduced numbers were due to perhaps a reduced budget and this resulted in a watered-down version of the original.
It's down to the cast then, to make what they can of it. This team are all names from TV soaps, theatre, or music, and honestly some can deliver a song better than others, at times there seemed to be uncertainty during some solo numbers. Stand-out was Chris (Samantha Seager) who throughout kept the team going and sung her solos brilliantly.
Overall I felt this version missed the mark. When I go to the theatre I love to be moved, the joy, the tragedy, and the comedy. All these aspects are present in this production, but somehow it does not allow all those qualities to breathe, it’s an ok night out but this story has the ability to be and great night out. If it ain't broke don’t break it.
If it ain’t broke, don’t FIX it!
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