THE BAND PLAYS ON (Sheffield Theatres)****

 

By Dave 

Link: https://www.sheffieldtheatres.co.uk/the-band-plays-on

Available until: On demand from Tuesday 16^th-Sunday 28^th March

We’ve seen quite a lot of monologues in lockdown (and I’ll happily see a lot more) and pre-lockdown a lot of us will have been to quite a few gigs. Both are enjoyable activities and I know quite a few people who enjoy both.

But putting monologues and gigs together into one production, that’s a new one for me and it works really well. The Band Plays On alternates monologues and songs, performed by five female actors. The show has been created to celebrate Sheffield and while not all the actors are from Sheffield (most of them actually seem to be from Lancashire, which is a shame in some ways, even though they are all brilliant), the monologues are about people from Sheffield and the music comes from the top Sheffield bands.

The Band Plays On is probably aimed more at the older generations. A lot of the monologues are based around times which the younger generations won’t remember and while some of the bands are still active, I doubt they’re at the top of most teenagers’ playlists. But while young people might not be able to appreciate the nostalgia, I think at least some of them would appreciate the great music and great performers, not to mention the great acting. The music comes from various artists including Arctic Monkeys, Def Leppard and Jarvis Cocker.

The songs are performed by the actors in the show, creating a band of their own for one night only. They’re all known for their musical theatre careers. Before the pandemic, Jocasta Almgill was in & Juliet, Sandra Marvin was in Waitress and Jodie Prenger was in A Taste of Honey. Anna-Jane Casey’s run in Girl from the North Country ended mere weeks before everything else ended. Maimuna Memon’s work includes a number of shows that have been made available online during the pandemic.

Together, they make a very talented girl group, happily singing lead and backing vocals. If it is just slightly lacking in chemistry, it’s probably because they’re all standing two metres apart, separated by bits of staging. They’re obviously not the same as the bands they’re covering but there’s no doubt about their ability to perform the music.

Robert Hastie and Anthony Lau are co-directors and they’ve produced a show which is full of energy, even when there’s limited movement, and lots of personality. Ben Stones’ set is clearly set up strategically to help keep the performers safe but it still looks glitzy. Will Stuart’s musical arrangements suit the singers well. They’re singing the songs but they’re not pretending to be the bands, it’s all about their strengths. The monologues, written by Chris Bush, are all really strong. I’m not sure if they’re performed live but most importantly, they’re performed well.

There’s a big range of stories with a focus on relationships with parents which is particularly resonant now when so many people can’t see their parents. The stories are quite long and detailed and brilliantly-narrated and acted. There’s a really fun one about football which I particularly liked and Anna-Jane Casey is a seriously incredible actor who deserves a lot more screen time. She was in Coronation Street a few years ago. A tiny role, only a couple of scenes but she made her character really interesting. (Not that I watch Coronation Street, I was just curious to see the woman who had totally wowed me as Anita in West Side Story when I was a student and went on to do the same in several other West End roles. It was great to see Anna-Jane again and yes, she’s still got it.)

The Band Plays On is available on demand until 28^th March. It won’t be everyone’s cup of Yorkshire Tea but if you like good music and good monologues, you’ll find both together here.