Calendar Girls the Musical by Gary Barlow and Tim Firth is a production of great integrity and warmth and has found its place at the Theatre Royal for the week.

Photo © John Swannell
It is inspired by the true story of a group of ladies, who decide to appear nude for a Women’s Institute calendar in order to raise funds to buy a settee for their local hospital, in memory of one of their husbands.
The show has huge amounts of humour and pathos concentrating on the overwhelming support of a community to create something quite extraordinary.
The apparent simplicity and energy of this remarkable tale belies its huge heart which is safe in the hands of an outstanding cast.
The company are universally strong from Sarah Jane Buckley (Annie) and Rebecca Storm (Chris) as long term friends alongside Sue Devaney (Cora) and the young rebels Tyler Dobbs (Tommo,) Danny Howker (Danny) and Isabel Caswell (Jenny.)
There is so much to enjoy in this celebration of humanity and determination in the face of grief.
The humour is well-timed and ensures there is little sentimentality or overdramatization of the storyline.
The effect is powerful and long-lasting; a show that no doubt will touch the hearts of the audience in many different ways but the overriding joy and triumph of friendship in the face of adversity is quite beautiful and the audience response is well deserved.
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Reviewer: Petra Schofield
Calendar Girls – The Musical, presented by David Pugh and Dafydd Rogers, is showing at the Theatre Royal in Bath until Saturday 9th November 2019.
For more information and tickets, visit the Theatre Royal website.