(Sheffield Theatres Production)
Oscar winning writer, Simon Beaufoy’s stage adaptation of
his 1997 blockbuster British film, The Full Monty, opened to a packed out
theatre at Malvern last night. A predominantly female audience buzzed with
excitement and anticipation, proving without doubt that sex sells. It always
has and probably always will and it is a concept in no way exclusive to the
male of the species.
This play is much more than just a bunch of unemployed ex steel
workers taking their clothes off to earn money. It is a story about struggle and
hardship and the, often unexpected, consequences of enforced change, good and
bad. It explores the dichotomy of vulnerability and strength of the human
spirit in challenging times. This is Beaufoy’s first venture into playwriting
and although it is a terrifically entertaining show, it seems to lack heart.
The characters are great and the storyline clear but it is still presented in a
screen format, consisting of a multitude of relatively short scenes, which can
make it difficult to truly connect and care about each character. In fact, many
of the actors get very little opportunity to really establish themselves. This
certainly doesn’t seem to effect the audience’s enjoyment of it though.
The large cast is made up of fifteen performers, many of whom
appear very little and double up as stage crew for the many scene changes. The
plot mostly revolves around Gaz, played by Gary Lucy, who is certainly very
pleasing on the eye and has a great energy. Unfortunately, his grasp of a
Northern accent isn’t so good and can make it difficult to hear the dialogue at
times, particularly at the beginning. This production is also his maiden voyage
onto the stage and perhaps placing a novice theatre performer in the lead role
of a play by a novice play writer wasn’t the best idea. Having said this, Lucy
commits fully to the role and gives his all. Andrew Dunn is superb as Gerald,
the gnome loving, white-collar worker who reluctantly becomes the group’s
choreographer while hiding his redundancy from his wife. Martin Miller gives a
star performance as the overweight stripper with self-esteem issues, Dave, his
stagecraft shining through and Rachel Finnegan is very convincing as Mandy.
Louis Emerick, Rupert Hill and Bobby Schofield are great as the rest of the
troupe and twelve year old, Fraser Kelly, is absolutely fantastic as Gaz’s son,
Nathan. Finally, the set, designed by Robert Jones, is phenomenal and works
brilliantly to accommodate the action and various settings.
The Full Monty does exactly what it says on the tin. The
audience loved it. It’s true to the film, with the same wonderful soundtrack,
and doesn’t disappoint those expecting to be titillated. The show is
practically sold out for the week run at Malvern Festival Theatre and it was a
joy to see a new audience demographic attending live theatre in droves. Long
may it continue!
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