I attended the Saturday matinee on the last day of the run. The place was heaving and the audiences reception of the play exuberantly enthusiastic. I suspected many had come to hear their offspring perform and the children played their part excellently
This was a production specially commissioned for the Manchester International Festival-indeed one of my first thoughts was that although there were touches that were reminiscent of Billy Elliot would it ‘travel’ in the same way? My feeling was that it would not and that it had already found its ideal audience in nostalgic Manchester Senior Citizens.
The set was a tour de force by Les Brotherston, slick, minimalist but converting quickly and effectively between scenes, coupled with the back projection which showed monochrome scenes from the 20s interspersed with Manchester in the late 60s. The latter brought many wistful responses from the audience – particularly a view of Piccadilly Gardens in the days when it had flowers instead of a concrete wall. The audience also seemed to enjoy being reminded of the Berni Inns, Golden Egg, Wimpy Bars and the Kardomah Coffee House, which represented the major eating out experiences for many people in that era.
But ultimately rather like a meal in the Berni Inn the production seemed rather over-rated. Don’t get me wrong – the audience loved it the acting was excellent, but somehow the storyline seemed thin and two dimensional relying too much on ‘product jokes’ and not enough on the poignancy of the choir story and of a vanished Manchester past. The Tubby and Enid romance by comparison seemed a bit contrived and the characters unconvincing. An interesting idea for a musical play with lots of promise which it never quite fulfilled. Up in 'Gods' the tickets were priced at £25-as ever the MIF performances are priced well outside many peoples pockets-but thats another story.
Hazel Roy