Review of Street Theatre's Brassed Off - 18th November 2011

Street Theatre's Brassed Off gained impressive attendance for it's 4 night run from 16th-19th November 2011, with nigh on sell-out shows at Strode Theatre near Glastonbury over the weekend.

Set in the fictitious mining town of Grimley in South Yorkshire, this black comedy/drama was originally a film starring Pete Postlethwaite which was later adapted for stage by Paul Allen and evokes the memories of 10 (and a half!) year old Shane.  Until tonight I had neither seen the film nor the play (and assumed it would be similar in feel to Billy Eliot and The Full Monty, which I suppose is not far from the truth -  in each working class northerners struggle in times of hardship during the time of Thatcher's reign and the destruction of our country's mining industry), and Street Theatre's play, directed by Dennis Barwell was very enjoyable being both humorous and sad with equal measure (as well as being performed by a bunch of southerners).

The plot takes place in 1994, a decade after the miners' strike and depicts the struggle of a local colliery brass band trying to survive despite the threatened closure of the pit; highlighting the desperate despair of poor families, the in-fighting between some of the mining community, the failing health of the band leader who despite slowly dying is still obsessed with his art, and the growing resentment towards a new member of the band who is found to be "working for the enemy".  While I believe that Neil Howiantz (who played band leader Danny) had the only genuine Yorkshire accent, the rest of the cast managed to carry off their northern accents more than adequately, although sometimes they were a little inaudible while the band was playing which was a feeling echoed by several members of the audience.  In fact the acting overall was superb from the main players: the always adaptable Gary McKinven playing Danny's son Phil; Ian Muton-Philips as Andy, Eliane Morgan as Gloria and Sandra Healy as Sandra were all confident and assured, while play producer Pete Fernandez who stepped into the role of Harry at the eleventh hour when cast member Paul Wynn was taken ill was also to be commended.  His role alongside that of Paul Townsend (his mate Jim) and their other halves Elaine Hayne (Vera) and Di Dean (Rita) presented much of the evening's comedy moments.  Cy Boddy who played ten year old Shane also appeared to be enjoying his role immensely, portraying the naivety and playful humour of a child despite being a fully grown adult actor.

The Yeovil Town Band and Burtle Silver Band who took on the role of the Grimley Colliery Band were faultless; the music expertly capturing poignant moments of the play with emotion; for example, the miners vote, the attempted suicide of Phil and when the bailiffs stripped Sandra and Phil's house of possessions. The music brilliantly added to the atmosphere and pathos, whether romping through the Floral Dance; The William Tell Overture or the Clog Dance (with the audience clapping along), or even defiantly playing the Tory Party theme Land of Hope and Glory, their haunting melodies had everyone enthralled and enraptured and received appreciative applause after every number.  Indeed the emotional intensity of having a live brass band in attendance both on the stage and at times around the auditorium has to be witnessed to be appreciated.

The set, like the story itself was simple yet effective with a giant pit wheel set in the background and the red brick pit entrance taking centre stage. This was cleverly designed so that during scenes depicting the kitchen of Sandra and Phil with table and chairs brought on stage, it could easily depict their back yard. Atmospheric lighting added to the bleakness of both the personal stories of the characters and the overall atmosphere, while added sound effects, props and costumes all helped pull this together to make Brassed Off another undoubted success for the Street Theatre company.