The Full Monty Aylesbury Waterside Theatre Review
DISCLOSURE – THIS ITEM WAS GIFTED TO THE REVIEWER FOR THE PURPOSES OF WRITING THE REVIEW. ALL THOUGHTS AND OPINIONS ARE THE REVIEWER’S OWN.
Reviewed by Amanda Dando
The Full Monty award winning play, arrived at Aylesbury Waterside Theatre tonight Tuesday 21 November. I don’t think I have seen the car park that busy this year, so it seemed that people from far and wide had braved the cold to see this somewhat iconic story on stage.
We did experience some queuing on entering the theatre, but it went down very quickly and we were soon inside and waited expectantly in our seats for the show to begin. I had high expectations for this show and had been looking forward to seeing it for some weeks.
I really do not want to spoil the story, if you haven’t seen the film of the same name which first was shown way back in 1997, featuring Robert Carlyle and friends portraying a group of unemployed men struggling to earn a living after the steel mill shuts down. They come up with a wild plan to perform for one night only as strippers. Yes you read that right, strippers.
The first half of the show was a slow burn building the story, the relationships between the characters and how they came together. The set was mainly the steelworks and the characters came alive on the stage before us. Firstly I have to praise the little man who played Nathan this evening, what an amazing job he did amongst all these adults on stage. Fantastic job young man, incredible for such a young person in the midst of such an adult story. He really nailed it.
In essence it’s an all male cast, there are a few cameo roles for the women, but there was a chemistry amongst the men which I am sure is hard to create if you don’t all get on. I loved them all, Danny Hatchard as Gaz, Neil Hurst as Dave and the talented Bill Ward as Gerald held the story together. There were many witty lines and comical moments, woven into a story of hardship, broken marriages, body image and so much more. So very often we focus on the struggles of women, when men are just as vulnerable as us. They are scared to admit their failures, body insecurities and so much more just because they are men.
It’s a great story and builds to the inevitable finale routine …there are some great tracks throughout the show, which all keep your toes tapping. I feel bad for drawing attention to the eye candy of the show, but step on up Jake Quickenden, ladies, this show is worth it just for this guys rear alone! To be fair, all of them in their own way bring something to the final number, you are all so very brave and I loved your enthusiasm and dedication to the cause. Ben Onwukwe as Horse and Nicholas Prasad as Lomper completed this talented bunch of guys not just baring their soles but soo much much more this evening on stage. Well done lads, fantastic finale, loved it.
The show is 2 hours 20 minutes long which includes the interval. The show is currently on a national tour and there are tickets available for a variety of dates up to April 2024.
Rating: 4/5
Tickets cost from £16.00 plus £3.80 transaction fee
The Full Monty is at Aylesbury Waterside Theatre Aylesbury from Tuesday 21st November to Saturday 25th November 2023.
For more information or to book tickets visit www.atgtickets.com
Or call the Box Office on 0844 871 7627
Aylesbury Waterside Theatre Exchange Street Aylesbury HP20 1UG