Calendar Girls

Synopsis

A group of extraordinary women, members of a very ordinary Yorkshire WI, persuade one another to pose for a charity calendar with a difference - no more photos of Wharfedale Bridges or Norman churches for them. Overcoming their initial reserve, the friends drop their dressing gowns, modesty spared only by artfully placed cakes, knitting and flower arrangements. Puzzling their husbands, mortifying their children, and riding the wrath of the outraged WI, they spark a global phenomenon. But as media interest snowballs, the Calendar Girls find themselves exposed in ways they’d never expected, revealing more about themselves than they’d ever planned. A very English story with a very English heart, Calendar Girls is quirky, poignant and hilarious. Adapted by Tim Firth from the Miramax film of the same name, it is based on uplifting, inspiring true events.

Our Review:

3 November 2010

After the success of the calendar itself and the film it inspired, there can be few who aren’t already familiar with the central premise of Calendar Girls,the ladies of the WI who bare all for a charity calendar after the premature death of one of their husbands. But however well known the story, it certainly hasn’t grown stale, and the stage version leads its audience through the protagonists’ journey with tenderness, warmth, and wit. Within a few scenes I was dabbing tears away from my eyes. By the end of the first act, the handkerchief had come out again – but this time for tears of laughter.

The show is ably carried by Linda Bellingham and Jan Harvey as Chris and Annie, the friends at the centre of it all. Highlights of a talented supporting cast include Debbie Chazen as hard-to-convince Ruth, and June Watson as feisty senior citizen Jessie.

The nudity is carefully handled: artfully placed tea trays and knitting mean nothing more is ...

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