Hi everyone, so at the weekend I went on a semi-spontaneous trip to London to see two shows. I hadn't planned to officially see anything but was hoping to see Made in Dagenham (Adelphi Theatre) and The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time (Gielgud Theatre) and, I'm pleased to say, I was lucky enough to get tickets to both of these, seeing Made in Dagenham on the evening on Friday 20th February and the matinee of The Curious Incident on Saturday 21st February. However, so that I keep to my New Year's Resolution of not writing too much I'm dedicating this blog to Made in Dagenham and will write another about The Curious Incident.
Now I'd seen Made in Dagenham twice before but have never written a proper blog about it so I thought I better correct that, plus I wanted to see it again before it closes on 11th April as I loved it so much before.
I think what I love so much about the show is the up tempo feel and the strong, sassy message. The story focuses on the women who worked at Ford Dagenham in 1968. The women in the musical are just average women of the day until it is announced to them that they are being but on an 'unskilled' pay grade. This sets off a chain reaction which ends up in them fighting for equal pay for women. However, this isn't just a sweet story that has been written to make a good musical, what makes Made in Dagenham so powerful is that it is based on the real women of Ford Dagenham who really did fight for equal pay for women. What's really good is that during the final song there is a mini film tribute to these real women, which I thought was an especially nice feature.
I do have to admit that this is the type of message I love; basically the weak, who just happen to be right, over-powerfing the strong. The programme lists several shows which follow this theme, with four of them being shows I've seen and throughly enjoyed: namely, Billy Elliot, Newsies (put it this way, if I were rich enough I would have flown back to New York several times to see this over and over again!), The Pajama Game and How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying. The other shows the programme lists are Working, I Can Get It For You Wholesale, Strike! and The Matchgirls. However, I would like to add Wicked and Matilda to this list...yes, yes, yes I know there are probably tons more but these were the first two that came to mind :)
Anyway, back to the show, well the cast were phenomenal. This time there were a few substitutes (Kate Coysten as Lisa Hopkins, Thomas Aldridge as Eddie and Christopher Howell and Harold Wilson) who I am pleased to say were just as amazing as the original cast members. Trying to think of which lady (as the show is focused on ladies) stole the show is an impossible task as all the main women were superb so I think a big blogging round of applause needs to go to Gemma Arterton (Rita O'Grady) - a truly stunning leading lady; Isla Blair (Connie) - very strong and powerful; Heather Craney (Claire) - who totally rocked the song Wossname; Sophie-Louise Dann (Barbara Castle) - once again another beautifully strong and powerful woman; Sophie Isaacs (Sandra) - a perfect Lulu impressionist; Sophie Stanton (Beryl) - gutsy and incredibly funny; Naana Agyei-Ampadu (Cass) - I'm running out of positive adjectives but she was totally fantastic; Emma Lindars (Pauline) - such a powerful voice!; and finally I can't leave out Kath Duggan (Tea Lady and Assistant Dance Captain) - whose part was rather small yet she shone in everyday possible!
As for the other parts that make a show, the set was quirky and cleverly designed and just what you'd want from a West End show. However, the music was out of this world combining the perfect mix of up-tempo songs and slower, soothing ballads and then the moody Storm Clouds Montage. For me the music was the cherry on top of an amazing cake, with my favourite song being Stand Up as it's so gutsy, so powerful, so 'We can do this!', it's just fantastic. The only really sad thing is that at the moment there is no CD and with the closing date coming up very soon, unless the tour rumours are true, it doesn't look like we'll get one which would be a massive shame. Nevertheless, you can listen to three of the tracks here and, well, there's always YouTube.
So, to finish off, I seriously beg you to go and see the amazing-ness that is Made in Dagenham with this fantastic cast before it closes...and if you want to take me with you, I'd be more than happy to come. This is one of the best feel good shows I have ever seen...I just love it!
Top: The Stage / Outside the Theatre
Bottom: Front of Hoodie / Programmes, Tickets and Canvas Bag / Back of Hoodie (please excuse dodgy photo...as hard as I was trying, I couldn't rotate like an owl to get the whole word in!)
I hope you've enjoyed reading about my trip to see Made in Dagenham. I you want to chat to me about it (or really do want to take me with you) please feel free to comment below or tweet me at @GreenGirlsRox...oh and don't forget to follow this blog and my Instagram where I post photos of all my theatrical outings.
Love you all
Kat
xx
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