The 5th August 1957 saw the publication of a single cartoon frame introducing Andy Capp and 15th March 2012 will see Rush Musical Society taking Andy and his cohorts to the stage in Alan Price and Trevor Peacock’s exuberant musical, with a delightful score that conjures up the timeless Geordie dreamworld of the eponymous protagonist.
So, how do you transfer a two dimensional, ink-based character to stage? Firstly, by drafting in the talents of set designer, John O’Donoghue, who has brought the drawings to three dimensions. The plot sets the impending wedding of Raquel and Elvis against Andy and Flo’s connubial stalemate at number 37 Durham Street. This show is described as a faithful evocation of the cartoon; full of mother-in-law jokes, drunken escapades, pigeon racing, big-bosomed, mini-skirted women wielding rolling pins and paunchy, cloth-capped men stomping around in boots. Not exactly P.C., then!
This is Rush Musical Society’s second production of Andy Capp, with several of the original cast delighted to be thrown back into the havoc of the Hartlepool dreamtime that they first savoured twenty years ago. Direction by Tony Finnegan, musical direction by Sarah Lynch-Barrett and choreography by Michael Evans - a musical trinity greatly appreciated by the society.
Tickets for the show, which runs from 15th – 18th and 20th – 24th March at the Millbank Theatre, Rush, are €18 each (€15 concessions) and are available by contacting the Millbank Theatre on 8437475 or bookings@millbanktheatre.com.
Please note there will be no performance on Monday 19th March.