By Catherine Collins
I’m not sure how it has been 25 years since smash hit film, The Full Monty, first aired in the UK, but it has.
As the stage show opened at Mayflower Theatre last night, we probably should have expected things to have moved on it that time, and at times I am sure it did.
And yet, the current cost of living crisis means that the themes that run so strongly though the stage show – including politics, depression, suicide, homosexuality, body image, and working class culture – are just as relevant today as they were back then.
Gaz and his mates are down on their luck and feel they have been thrown on the scrap heap, but they are determined to fight back and bare a little more than they ever thought they would have to.
The production follows the original storyline, with all the stand-out moments, characters and hit songs, which take the audience on a rollercoaster ride of ups, downs, laughs, and heartbreak.
Credit must go to casting director, Marc Frankum, who has done an excellent job choosing a fantastic cast that the audience can relate to so well, and all of them certainly contribute to a fabulous evening full of laughs, despite some of the darker themes.
The young Theo Hills, who plays Nathan, deserves a special mention – he steals the hearts of everyone watching, and his witty lines are delivered with the comedic timing of someone far more mature.
This is not just a story about stripping, this is about the reasons why people sometimes do the things they do.
And, if you want to know if the cast ‘leave their hats on’ – there’s only one way to find out!
Tickets for The Full Monty (Tuesday 7– Saturday 11 November 2023) are on sale at mayflower.org.uk or 02380 711811.
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