REVIEW: 9-5 The Musical at The Everyman Theatre, Cork.
Presented by the incredible Musical Theatre graduates at The Cork School of Music
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9-5 The Musical at The Everyman Theatre Cork
Musical theatre at its best is the perfect combination of storytelling and music. In the world of culture, Ireland is known as a country of storytelling and music and I have often wondered why is there so little professional musical theatre tradition in this country? Imported mega musicals on a tour stop at the Bord Gáis mega theatre don’t count; and there is an argument that they suck the life out of the rest of the country’s musical theatre scene.
Alongside the River Lee in Cork City there is a group of people who are working hard to change this narrative, and their labours are bearing fruit.
The Cork School of Music (part of Munster Technical University), recently presented their latest graduate production, 9-5 The Musical, at the Everyman Theatre in Cork City. The piece showcased the incredible talent that is graduating from the college’s Musical Theatre BA and shows why the college is finally exploding the myth that young Irish performers need to go to London or New York to receive high quality professional training in the musical theatre art form.
The musical theatre course is only in its fifth year and much has been learnt along the way. With this show, the third full scale production that the college has produced, there is a new level of confidence in the ability of both students and faculty - and even a hint of swagger. Firstly, they have brought in West End musical theatre royalty, and County Meath man Killian Donnelly to direct the show. Secondly, instead of playing 9-5 for ‘80s period kitsch value and cheap laughs Donnelly has insisted the piece be played for its drama and truth. This is harder work but ultimately more rewarding for the audience and the cast because this course produces highly polished musical theatre actors.
The show tells the story of a misogynist boss and a work environment that is run by and for the boys’ clubs. It is based on the 1980 movie starring Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin and, of course, Dolly Parton and many of its themes still resonate today, over 40 years after the original movie was released.
9-5 The Musical is a female focused story, and this production has three dynamic young women in the principal roles who are the heart and power of the show.
Jessica Hayes as Judy Bernly perfectly paces her character’s transformation from shattered, deceived and unwilling divorcee to a woman who rediscovers her strength and sense of self thanks to her new female friends. Hayes absolutely nails the emotional release of the show’s blockbusting eleven o’clock number when she tells her ex-husband, Dick, to Get Out and Stay Out.
Saiorse Daly’s character, Doralee Rhodes, is a version of Ms Parton. But Daly resists the temptation to just impersonate Dolly and instead uses her ability to show us Doralee’s very real conflicts and strengths – especially in the act one song Backwoods Barbie.
Jacinta Hegarty gives a towering performance as Violet Newstead, a woman who is overqualified for her own job but continually overlooked for promotion, despite training the men who move up. Violet is a woman coping with widowhood and motherhood while also running the secretarial pool, dealing with a teenage sone and fixing the motorised garage door. Hegarty captures how Violet’s projection of external strength is a necessary coping mechanism but skilfully leaves enough space in her performance to reveal her character’s desire to gradually open up to new emotional possibilities with Joe (played by Zach O’Brien who properly understands how a supporting role gives the principal space to flourish).
The object of the women’s ire is Franklin Hart Jr, the company CEO. Adam Byrne balances the misogynist bully with energy, comedy timing and just the right amount of creepiness in Here For You. He allows us to laugh at the stereotype while, simultaneously, being disgusted by it in a mature performance that avoids pantomime villain tropes.
A big challenge for performing arts colleges is finding shows that have a strong sense of the ensemble. 9-5 The Musical gives opportunities for many of the cast to be more than just ‘happy villagers.’ Leonie Schnell triumphs as Ros Keith, the woman who loves being close to the power held by Franklin Hart Jr. When she rips open her blouse in Heart to Hart, we might be laughing but we also love her. I’ve never been convinced by the show’s epilogue which has Ros settling down with Hart’s wife as if being a gay woman was somehow comic. It is the cheapest of cheap laughs and Donnelly might have been wise to skip this, in the same way that in last year’s production of Our House the act two opener, Nightboat to Cairo was changed to avoid offensive racial stereotypes.
I really enjoyed the performances of Jack Fitzgerald as Dick, Judy’s ex-husband who wants her back after his new squeeze dumps him and Andrew Armitage as Doralee’s solid husband Dwayne. Both actors expertly give their onstage partner the space to shine without diminishing their own role.
The rest of the company all give strong performances that are committed and truthful showing the college’s talent has strength in depth.
Choreographer Therese O’ Sullivan’s work is elegant and stylish. In this show it included a Vegas showgirl number, a Fosse tribute and a hoe down (it is a Dolly Parton show!), while in the pit, Maestro David Hayes again sprinkled his musical magic over a tight sounding band that was spread over two locations – no mean feat.
9-5 The Musical did not get glowing reviews when it opened on Broadway on 2008. At the Tony Awards it was swept away by Billy Elliot and The New York Times described it as ‘gaudy and empty’. On this side of the ocean the response had always been stronger with The Guardian calling the show ‘a triumph’. The audience that I sat with would have agreed with the latter description.
This production shows that we can produce world class musical theatre talent here in Ireland and that students are coming to study musical theatre here from around Europe. I think it is time for the Irish arts world (and especially finding bodies), to catch up and realise what is being developed here and start work on building the creative infrastructure needed to allow these young performers to build careers in Ireland rather than being forced abroad to work.
This production of 9-5 The Musical is a joyous experience and an opportunity to see our next generation of theatre stars. I hope that they are all given the chance to shine.
