Review | ‘The Girls’ at London’s Phoenix Theatre
By Will Stroude
I feel cold-hearted criticising this much-anticipated new musical – written by Gary Barlow and Tim Firth and based on the 2003 film Calendar Girls – as it has enormous heart. Like an adorable puppy it manipulates the emotions and justwants to be loved.
Unlike the film, this production concludes with the famous calendar shoot itself which leaves two hours of very thin plot. Recently widowed Annie (Joanna Riding) wants to raise money to buy a new sofa for the local hospital in memory of her late husband. Best friend Chris (Claire Moore) has the idea of stripping off for a nude Woman’s Institute calendar which they do to great aplomb – but not before facing some personal demons and exorcizing a few ghosts.
This is a story of unconventional women yet told in the most conventional and predictable way. It is also almost unbearably wholesome and twee. Lyrics include highlighting the perils of using raisins and cherries when baking scones, buying margarine in Tesco and being repeatedly told how ‘salt of the earth’ Yorkshire people are.
There is however a lot to like. We are given time with each of the women and their characters emerge fully rounded and lovable. Joanna Riding will move you to tears with her solo Scarborough – a lament to holidays with her late husband. Ruth (Debbie Chazen) gets more than a few guilty chuckles with My Russian Friend And I – a firm nod to those of us who have sought comfort with a night in and a bottle of spirits.
And what of the famous photo shoot itself? When it finally comes it’s worth the wait; it is genuinely daring, laugh-out-loud funny, brilliant in its precision and truly joyful. These ladies are having the time of their life and we want to join in.
The Girls is a feel-good show about the endurance of love and friendship, complete with soaring tunes and catchy numbers. Beyond that however there is not much else, as predictable as the changing seasons of Yorkshire.
Rating: 3/5
The Girls is currently playing at London’s Phoenix Theatre. For tickets click here.
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Words by Matthew Hyde
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