Preview - Miss Crispy 1988 - Gala Theatre

Journey back to the 1980s for a play that is packed full of fun and flavour

Shoulder pads, tiaras and cheese and onion crisps – beauty pageants and North East factory lines collide in a must-see play set in the 1980s.

Miss Crispy 1988 tells the story of a group of female friends whose working life at a Teesside crisp factory is turned upside down when they are invited to enter a beauty contest. 

The production is set to entertain audiences at Durham’s Gala Theatre at 7.30pm on Friday 17 January and is inspired by the stories of workers at The Crispy – the nickname given to the KP crisps factory in Billingham. 

The factory was a major employer in the area in the 1980s and theatregoers can look forward to big hair, legwarmers and plenty of Northern wit in this nostalgic yet moving comedy about female friendship, love and overcoming adversity. 

Miss Crispy 1988 was written by David Tuffnell and is produced by Less is More, a Middlesbrough-based theatre company with a passion for telling stories from working-class communities. It received rave reviews when it first toured the region in 2013, and the Less is More team cannot wait to bring the show to the Gala.

The theatre is close to the heart of the play’s director Laura Lonsdale, who is currently appearing as the genie in this year’s Gala pantomime, Aladdin. Laura previously taught at the Gala Theatre Stage School and has gone on to cast many former students in the shows she has directed over the years. 

Laura, from Middlesbrough, said: “It’s always a joy to come to the Gala Theatre. County Durham audiences are a pleasure to perform to and I know they will love Miss Crispy 1988. It’s the tenth anniversary of Less is More this year and what better way to celebrate than to tour a show that epitomises what we are all about; honesty, drama and humour.”

 

David added: “I think Miss Crispy has received such a positive reaction because it’s a story that is set in our region with characters people can relate to. Those of us who lived through the 1980s will enjoy the sense of nostalgia it evokes – the music, the clothes, the big perms.  

“However, the 1980s were also an important period in history and a time of great change, especially for women. This is explored in the play through the thoughts, experiences and ambitions of five unique but very relatable female characters.”

Tickets for Miss Crispy 1988 are priced at £15, £13 for concessions and £12 for Gala members. To book, visit www.galadurham.co.uk or call 03000 266 600.

Exit Routes - Review - The Theatre Upstairs

Exit Routes

The Theatre Upstairs
10th October 2017

Presented by The Billingham Players
Written by Liz Turner
Directed by Denise Philips

The Theatre Upstairs is a quirky little theatre on Billingham Green. A former dance hall, the auditorium has tiered seating but no stage which makes it feel like an indoor amphitheatre. it makes for a versatile and interesting performance space. It is the home of the Billingham Players, and from the moment you enter and climb the stairs there is a sense of  community here. The walls are decorated hand painted theatrical images, and a stair lift waits patiently to help anyone who can't manage the climb. You are welcomed with a smile and a greeting at the desk, and counted for the all important visitor stats. Tonight there is a very pleasing buzz of conversation as people take their seats, calling greetings across the seats as obvious regulars arrive and spot friends in the audience. . The atmosphere is relaxed, warm and friendly.

As the house lights go down however, the chatter stops instantly and the show begins. The setting is a factory canteen, complete with plastic chairs, Formica tables, a service counter offering an array of snack food and a tea urn. The cast enter to the strains of "Here come the girls"  - an ironic, yet apt musical choice as it very quickly becomes clear that these are no kick-ass girl-power divas, but downtrodden, bored factory workers. They have just had the joy of a lottery win, swiftly followed by the disappointment of the size of the pay-out. The women talk about what they will do with the money: Laura, the youngest, has already spent most of hers, the older women will save theirs and put it towards Christmas. The amount of the win is enough to make the present a little easier, but not enough to help them escape the drudgery of factory working. And as the play progresses we learn that they all have other reasons to want to escape, and for some, reasons why escape is unlikely.

This is a funny play. The women dream of a better life, they joke, and carp, and push boundaries, sometimes over stepping the mark, but never entirely falling out - until one of them does the unthinkable. The women spark off each other as only a close knit group can do. It reminds me of Shakers, and The Rag Trade.

For me the two stand out performances come from Hanna Smith and Carol Daley. Hanna as the youngster Laura, struggling to understand the older women, living for the moment, and refusing to see life beyond 30. The scene in the pub where she drinks herself almost under the table is classic. (Yet another example of convincing drunken acting, I am beginning to wonder if it is a speciality of North East amateur dramatics!) And Carol is completely convincing as the Lithuanian Halina, from the accent that never falters to the facial expressions and gestures, she is decidedly Eastern European!

This was my first time at the Theatre Upstairs, all in all it was an enjoyable and entertaining evening.
Theatre right on your doorstep, and they have a bar and ice creams. What more could you need?
Exit Routes plays until Saturday, tickets are just £11/£9 and you can pay on the door.

Denise Sparrowhawk

Preview - Billingham Players at the Theatre Upstairs - Autumn 2017 Season

Preview Autumn 2017

Exit Routes
Christmas Past, Christmas Present
Billingham Players at The theatre Upstairs. 

The Billingham Players start their new season with Exit Routes written by Liz Turner, directed by Denise Phillips.  A group of five factory women share their thoughts, dreams and problems, swapping jokes and insults as they try to cope with the daily grind. They are always looking for that lottery win, and are always disappointed. They begin to look elsewhere for a means of escape, and when their colleague Corinne returns from holiday, it seems it's no co-incidence that Tessa's husband has been away at exactly the same time. And then the Christmas club money disappears along with Corinne...
Exit Routes runs from Mon 9th to Sat 14th Oct. 

This is followed in December by the Christmas Show - Christmas Past, Christmas Present, a seasonal spectacular. This musical show is directed by Sue Brackenbury, with musical direction by Steve McNichol. It runs from Weds 6th to Sat 9th December.

Billingham Players are an amateur theatre group which began life as ‘The Synthonia Players’, associated with ICI and performed at the Synthonia Club on Belasis Avenue. In 1974 they took the decision to run their own theatre and moved to the Theatre Upstairs, a former dance hall above the co-op stores, changing their name to The Billingham Players. Their members come from all walks of life, ranging in age from teenagers to (shall we say) the more mature thespian. They stage a number of productions each year and have a very varied programme.

Details of their shows are available online at www.billinghamplayers.co.uk
Tickets to the shows cost £11 (£9) and are available from:
Perfect Fit, Station Rd, Billingham,
Rediscover Stockton, High Street, Stockton
Or book by phone on 01642 586180 or 551981