A great
mix of raucous comedy, storming feminism and pounding music, Dolly Parton’s
very own 9-5: The Musical certainly
gives Mamma Mia and Jersey Boys a run for their money. Opening
with the title song’s crashing crescendo, a spectacularly colourful stage and a
descending projection of Dolly herself, the show promised everything delightfully
tacky, boisterous and unconventional that one could hope for from one of the
most distinctive country singers of all time.
Modelled closely on the iconic 1980s film and book by Patricia Resnick, the tale centres around three feisty employees of Consolidated Companies: Doralee Rhodes (Amy Lennox), Judy Bernely (Natalie Casey) and Violet Newstead (Jackie Clune) all exploited by their lascivious and chauvinist boss, Franklin Hart. Fed up with the "boys club" style of business, they decide to take matters into their own hands, exacting a somewhat absurd revenge on Hart whilst creating a progressive worplace utopia with job-sharing and day care.
A brief summary of the narrative however cannot do justice to the eclectic mix of scenes. Carried along by moments of kidnap, pot-smoking, dead bodies in car boots and even the casual bit of S&M, it was easy to forget the structural lacking of the plot. The superb writing also helped to compensate for narrative shortcomings. punchy lines like "your arse is grass and I'm a lawnmower" were interspersed with tender and naturalistic dialogue so the show achieved a fine balance between bawdy comedy and touching realism. Although it was Jackie Clune as Violet Newstead the no-nonsense office veteran who really stood out, it was the supporting characters who really gave the performance its oomph. Lori Hayley Fox's appearance as the office drunk Margaret provided not only the laughs but offered a subtle social commentary.
9 to 5 certainly took the tone of Parton’s own feminism, once joking that she “wanted to be the first woman to burn her bra, but it would have taken the fire department four days to put it out”. The “girl-power” agenda took on a comic rhetoric that may well have caused the more serious feminists to squirm in their seats. Yet whilst the feminist sensibility was clearly vintage, the spectacular array of costume and the intricacies of the set transported the audience back to the year 1979 demanding we take the out-dated feminism with a pinch of salt.
Modelled closely on the iconic 1980s film and book by Patricia Resnick, the tale centres around three feisty employees of Consolidated Companies: Doralee Rhodes (Amy Lennox), Judy Bernely (Natalie Casey) and Violet Newstead (Jackie Clune) all exploited by their lascivious and chauvinist boss, Franklin Hart. Fed up with the "boys club" style of business, they decide to take matters into their own hands, exacting a somewhat absurd revenge on Hart whilst creating a progressive worplace utopia with job-sharing and day care.
A brief summary of the narrative however cannot do justice to the eclectic mix of scenes. Carried along by moments of kidnap, pot-smoking, dead bodies in car boots and even the casual bit of S&M, it was easy to forget the structural lacking of the plot. The superb writing also helped to compensate for narrative shortcomings. punchy lines like "your arse is grass and I'm a lawnmower" were interspersed with tender and naturalistic dialogue so the show achieved a fine balance between bawdy comedy and touching realism. Although it was Jackie Clune as Violet Newstead the no-nonsense office veteran who really stood out, it was the supporting characters who really gave the performance its oomph. Lori Hayley Fox's appearance as the office drunk Margaret provided not only the laughs but offered a subtle social commentary.
9 to 5 certainly took the tone of Parton’s own feminism, once joking that she “wanted to be the first woman to burn her bra, but it would have taken the fire department four days to put it out”. The “girl-power” agenda took on a comic rhetoric that may well have caused the more serious feminists to squirm in their seats. Yet whilst the feminist sensibility was clearly vintage, the spectacular array of costume and the intricacies of the set transported the audience back to the year 1979 demanding we take the out-dated feminism with a pinch of salt.
It was
however the set and scene transitions that prevented me from becoming truly
absorbed in Dolly’s time-capsule. It seemed at times that the stage was
slightly too large for the scenery that attempted to fill it, a shortcoming
only illuminated rather than disguised by the brightness of the lighting. The
set changes also proved to be fairly slow moving disturbing the fast pace of the
plot.
The
musical score was performed to a very high degree. Particularly impressive were
the performances from Amy Lennox as Doralee (the bright blonde hillbilly
modelled on Dolly herself) and Bonnie Langford as Roz Keith, the sycophantic
assistant to Franklin Hart. However the music itself was disappointing, lacking
the freshness and diversity of Parton’s own musical repertoire. Whilst songs
such as Backwards Barbie struck a
chord with Parton’s own anthems of empowerment, the songs in the second act did
begin to merge into one another not least by the repeated 9-5 riff that acted
not so much a transitional smoother as a jarring interruption. The show
certainly only presented one side of Dolly Parton. The radically political yet delicate
songwriter of Coat of Many Colours and
My Tennessee Mountain Home didn’t
come across at all.
So perhaps the plot was ridiculously implausible, the songs a little
samey and the set changes clumsy but if you want an alternative to Reflex to get
your cheese and feel-good fix then 9-5:
The Musical definitely fits the bill. It will certainly be an enjoyable
night and it is impossible not to come out beaming. And if you do see it, as a
projected Dolly herself commands, then “tell everyone all about it” and if you
don’t, well, “y’all better keep your big mouth shut.”
You can hear Ellie's review by visiting the URY Player
You can hear Ellie's review by visiting the URY Player
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