Made In Dagenham

Reviews

It's no secret, I love 'Made in Dagenham' and so this was always going to be an exciting evening for us.

On arrival in the hall, the seating arrangement was drastically different from the usual layout as this evenings performance was technically in the round with a large stage area on the floor in a T-shape coming down from the stage. This worked really well giving a larger performance area for the company numbers.

From the opening Number 'Busy Woman' the show charged along with its own momentum with slick scene changes and strong performances.

Debbie Stevens as Rita O'Grady gave a fantastic performance both in her portrayal of the mother torn between her family and her responsibility. She took us on the journey with her and we appreciated every step. James Hughes as her husband Eddie, had all the rough edges of a Dagenham Boy and all the charm too. His rendition of The Letter was lovely.

The Dagenham Girls were all strong characters with Sarah Neary as the foul mouthed and down to earth Beryl, Emma Thwaite as Dolly Bird Sandra, Lucie Barrow as forgetful Clare and Sarah Taylor as ambitious pilot Cass. Lucie did a fantastic job with 'Wossisname' and she maintained the character throughout which was fantastic.

I also really liked by contrast Amy Pudney as Lisa Hopkins, she gave a very sympathetic interpretation of the posh wife of Dagenham plant manager Mr Hopkins, played by John Hughes.

Harold Wilson was played admirably by Andrew Raymond, who got all the humour in the role of the hapless Prime Minister and Lisa Rawlings gave a powerhouse performance as Barbara Castle - I really enjoyed her delivery of 'An Ideal World' which was excellent. In addition, I also really liked the characterisation of Nic Rayment as the American Ford Boss Tooley.

All the chorus numbers were well delivered with some well thought out choreography which was a real bonus for the show. The Band did an amazing job in fact had we not known it was only a four piece band we would never had known as the sound they produced was excellent.

In fact this was a hugely enjoyable performance from start to finish, in fact compared to some groups we have seen in larger venue or larger towns this stood head and shoulders above them and this was definitely the best production we have seen in Blackmore to date.

Massive congratulations to all involved.

Nikki Mundell-Poole, https://theatrelife.org

The interesting thing about being a NODA rep when you’ve performed in many of the locations is that you have a pre-conceived idea of what can and can’t be achieved in certain venues. When I heard that Blackmore Players were performing Made in Dagenham at Blackmore Village Hall, I was surprised. I’ve been in a concert there before, therefore I know there is restricted wing space and very little room backstage. I confess I wondered how they would pull off such a big musical in this lovely but small village hall, but what I witnessed was, as far as I’m concerned, a little bit of magic!

Made in Dagenham the musical, which followed a 2010 film of the same name, is based on events which took place in the summer of 1968. A group of women, who were machinists at the Ford plant in Dagenham, decided to fight for equal pay, so took on Ford and the trade union which was supposed to be representing them. The show debuted in the West End in 2014 to mixed, but generally good, reviews but despite this closed just six months later due to poor ticket sales. It has now become a favourite with amateur societies because of its brilliant music, multiple female principal roles and feel-good ending. In Essex it of course also holds a more special place in people’s hearts as a story close to home.

Blackmore Players utilised not only the stage but part of the hall floor for their performance, which was very sensible and allowed them to showcase the chorus well. Their set was impressive; their three-piece band sat at the back of the stage slightly visible behind a gauze which was set with car parts and down each side of the stage were flats made to look like corrugated iron with the Ford logo emblazoned on them. But it was the furniture that in a way was the star of the show, simply because I had no idea where it was all coming from! The stage right wings seemed to be modelled on Mary Poppins’ magic bag. Chairs, a small table, a large desk, a park bench, a leather sofa and then finally a bed with mattress appeared seamlessly from the wings to dress the stage! It was clear that the cast had been practising these changes for a while as there were barely any noticeable problems. I was very impressed so well done to director and stage manager Bill.

The heroine of our show is Rita O’Grady, a busy working mum with two young children and a bit of a useless husband. Debbie Stevens played the role and by the end of the first half I had completely warmed to her. She sang well and had good characterisation. Her husband Eddie was played by James Hughes and with the programme informing me this was his first lead role in a musical, I was impressed. Eddie’s big number is called The Letter, in which he sings the words to a letter he’s left Rita, and it’s a very moving song which he sang superbly. The only slight issue I had with this pairing was the difference in age, which jarred a little and made it difficult to believe they were a couple.

Rita’s colleagues are a diverse gaggle of women and there are some great parts here. My absolute favourite is Beryl, who has a filthy mouth and always tells it like it is. Sarah Neary played this part superbly and I laughed almost every time she spoke. You have to completely go for it with Beryl and she didn’t hold back! The other friends, Cass, Clare and Sandra were played by Sarah Tayler, Lucie Burrow and Emma Thwaite and they all did well. Clare, who basically never finishes a sentence, sang her song Wossname with great comic timing and was very likable.

The female chorus was vast and their singing was excellent. The harmonies really stood out, so well done to MD Shirley. The sound really carried which I know from experience can be difficult in that hall. I would say that some of the chorus ladies need to remember to bring a similar enthusiasm to their faces, especially when they are supposed to be playing women fighting for equal rights, because the passion didn’t always show through. The smaller male chorus also sounded impressive most of the time and there were some really strong singers. As with most amateur shows, the men of the chorus have to play multiple parts and I want to give a special mention to Rob Brown who is credited with four roles in the programme. His mannerisms and looks changed significantly from one character to the next, going from a common Ford worker to a well-spoken teacher to a Brummy working for the trade union, which is exactly what should happen to help the audience believe. This wasn’t always achieved with other members of the cast though. For example, I felt it was a shame that one of the Ford workers appeared a few scenes later as an aide in the Prime Minister’s office and then again as a camp publicity singer advertising Cortinas, but there was no attempt to “disguise” them with glasses or a wig or similar. I know it must have been difficult with so many costume changes but it’s just a little thing I noticed.

Younger cast members should always be applauded for having the guts to go on stage, so well done to Jessica Pudney and Jacob Burrow who played Rita’s kids Sharon and Graham. They did really well and should be proud. Andrew Raymond made a superb Harold Wilson (I particularly enjoyed him skipping around his office!) and Lisa Rawlings clearly relished playing Secretary of State for Employment Barbara Castle. It’s a brilliant role and she embodied it perfectly. All other supporting roles were strong and I didn’t feel there was a weak link among them.

All the costumes were lovely, particularly the women’s colourful 60’s dresses. I thought the stage was used well and as mentioned, it was necessary to take some of the action onto the floor, but a few times this happened when key scenes were playing out on stage which meant I missed what was going on. I liked most of the choreography and the spacing on and off the stage. The lighting slightly let the show down in places. A spotlight didn’t appear quickly enough at one point and when it did, it was pink, then green before it finally became white. There was also a very strong spotlight which, when turned on, seemed to start on the ceiling several times or illuminate the audience! As mentioned, the sound was good, which was helped by radio mics, but it sounded like one was left on backstage at one point and someone could be heard talking throughout an entire song! These were probably opening night glitches and I’m sure would have been sorted out the next day.

Overall, I really enjoyed this production. The cast were strong and they performed well and the positives of the show definitely outweighed any small negatives. Well done Blackmore Players and thank you for having me.

Jess Pether, NODA