At Theatr Clwyd |
| Clwyd Theatr Cymru- Brassed Off , The Coal Exchange Cardiff , June 10, 2005 |
| Credit for the creation of the hilarious and very human story that lies at the core of this very fine and wonderful evening of first class theatre must go to the film makers at Channel 4 and the original screen play writer Mark Herman. But so brilliantly have adapter Paul Allen, director Terry Hands and Script Consultant Steffan Rhodri succeeded in transporting the action from Northern England to the South Wales valleys that it hard not to believe that this is not where the true genesis of the story lies. The pure theatre that Hands brings to the production also ensures that as a stage piece it is arguably even more satisfying and rewarding than the original film. The 200 seat CTC mobile theatre set up within Cardiff’s Coal Exchange transforms the atmosphere of the Victorian building into a modern and exciting theatre environment. The Tylorstown Band alternate with the Bedwas, Trethomas and Machen band and bring an up-beat and genuine Brass-band experience to the proceedings. Music consultant Gavin Saynor ensures that many of our favourite, heart-rending Welsh tunes are there to reassure us that we are very much on homegrown territory. The band sits on either side of the glittering ‘coal-black’ raked stage. A gigantic pit wheel rises from floor to ceiling at the back of the stage. A near perfect stylised theatrical setting far removed from the realities of the 1980s, poverty stricken valley’s town where the action takes place. But that is the magic of this production; we are there in the band practice room, on the picket line and in the home of Hadyn and Mandy so bitterly divided by the strain and poverty of the strike. Ioan Hefin and Maria Pride are so moving and believable in their roles, this is acting as good as it gets. This is the case with every member of the cast. An all ‘Welsh’ play with a superb Welsh cast, if this isn’t what a Welsh National Theatre should look like then I’d like to know what does. The hilarious drunken comedy opening of the second half performed by Lyn Hunter, Sara Harris-Davies, Brendan Charleson and Gwyn Vaughan Jones brought shrieks of laughter from the audience reminiscent of Benny Hill or Tommy Cooper. We were on a continuous roller coaster taking us from laughter to strong and moving emotion and back again, no sooner had our tears dried then they came shooting out again with laughter in our eyes. What was so exceptional was the realism and believability of each character, they could have all just walked in off the streets. Or as in the case of our young hero Barry in from the snooker hall across the road, an extremely attractive performance by Daniel Llewelyn-Williams and complemented so perfectly by a bewitching and delicious Gloria again performed with a compelling and complete delicacy by Branwen Gwyn, whose horn playing, one might say was another very effective string to her bow! There has to be a triumph that overcomes all this adversity but we’re not going to get let off the hook that lightly. It’s another tearjerker. Against all the odds the band, of the now closed colliery, wins through to the National Finals at the Albert Hall. Bandleader, Dafydd despite his hospitalisation due to the miner’s old ‘friend’ silicosis contrives to be there and fulfil an ambition of a lifetime. In the closing moments of the drama with ‘Cwm Rhondda’ ringing in our years John Cording in the concluding moments of a towering performance removes his band jacket and puts it on his grandson Scott and …… The whippersnapper thirteen-year-old is played by teenage actor Ciaran Joyce who demonstrates such consummate skills and possesses such a knowing sense of humour and an understanding of stage technique far beyond his age. He acts as our narrator, introducing the story to us and guiding us through all its ups and downs. He like all the other members of the cast looks us in the eye and tells us exactly how it is, thus we see that what Clywd Theatr Cyrmru care about most is us, their audience. And we all left them behind, somewhat reluctantly but exceptionally well satisfied. In a programme note it states that Clwyd Theatr Cymru is actively seeking a second home in Cardiff. On the strength of this performance alone, The Welsh Assembly Government, (many of it’s Cabinet members including our First Secretary were in last night’s audience and blubbed along with the rest of us) plus the leaders of the Council should open the gates wide, grant Terry Hands the freedom of the City and move this wonderful company in without any further hesitation! |
Reviewed by: Michael Kelligan |
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