Calender Girls

When Annie’s husband John dies of leukaemia, she and best friend Chris resolve to raise money for a new settee in the local hospital waiting room. They manage to persuade four fellow Women’s Institute members, Cora, Celia, Ruth and Jessie, to pose nude with them for an “alternative” calendar, with a little help from hospital porter and amateur photographer Lawrence. The news of the women’s charitable venture spreads like wildfire, and hordes of press soon descend on the small village of Knapeley in the Yorkshire Dales. The calendar is a success, but Chris and Annie’s friendship is put to the test under the strain of their new-found fame.

CAST

NODA Review by Kevin Proctor

The Calendar Girls by Tim Firth: A compelling story of hope, determination, friendship and considerably bigger buns! A true story based on a group of WI members in Yorkshire who were the originators of the nude charity calendar idea in the mid 90’s, this daring idea has been copied many times since, but some would say never bettered. The Calendar Girls film grossed more than £60m at the box office worldwide, while the play  which Firth adapted from his film script has taken more than £21m in ticket sales alone. Certainly, as far as the Altrincham Garrick’s presentation of this play is concerned, it’s a careful mixture of nimble acting skills and canny casting in this story which, while it deals with the dreaded big ‘C’, is humorous and ultimately uplifting. At the centre of the strong ensemble cast is Beverly Stuart-Cole, who relishes her role as Chris and drives the calendar project with head girl levels of determination, Beverly excelled in her WI conference speech at the beginning of act 2 which received a heart-warming and well deserved applause from the audience. The cast of game actresses worked well as a unit and generated a natural rapport with delightful performances all round radiating a sense of warmth. Annie – the recent widow played by Janet Slade – encourages the ladies to think outside their frocks! Her subtle struggle to remain upbeat through her grief was beautifully portrayed which I imagine could easily be lost amongst Firth’s loftier characters and comic one liners, but, Janet kept us all in line reminding us where the heart of this play truly lies. The photography shoot / nude scene was handled with comic bravado which was portrayed not too dissimilar to a silent comedy routine, milking any discomfort the audience (or even the cast) may have about such unseemly revelations! This, and rightly so, was the plays highlight, the enactment was fulfilling and delivered a mix of emotions from fear to accomplishment, laughter to surprise, undoubtedly the peak to the play as I’m sure was intended during its original creation.