"Brassed Off" A Derby Theatre Production.

Derby Theatre.

For those old enough to remember the miner's strikes of the 70's and 80's, this play will bring back some of the emotions that you may have felt, and I, as a miner's son felt a pang of patriotism to the cause, even though at the height was too young to really take in the hardship of the whole scene.

It was very easy to feel sympathy for the miners in "Brassed Off" with the loss of their livelihood hanging like a noose over them. The loss of, not only their job, but for some their homes, their families and their dignity. But music for these men ran through the core of their solidarity and that's what kept their spirits up and saved them from losing all hope in what must have seemed a hopeless world.

There is plenty of laughter but equally there is plenty of sorrow, heartache and emotions balanced like a pair of scales. One minute you were laughing and seconds later, having lightened the scene, there was tragedy. The fear of diseases that sprung up from the coal dust, attempted suicide when Phil ( Jimmy Fairhurst ), felt that he couldn't lose anything else. His home had been taken from him, his wife and family had left him, his father, Danny (Gareth Williams),was dying in hospital and his clown act for the kids was dying a death as well.

Through all of this, Danny held on to the hope of winning that final Brass Band competition, and that's what the band reformed to do, and they did.

I last saw Gareth at Derby Theatre in "Palace Of Varieties", and loved his performance. As Danny, you can feel his passion, not only for the music but for his fellow band members as well as his family. Like many characters of Danny's age, you revel in that warmth that is shown through the crack in the well-worn armour. You can't help but love the character and the actor.

Jimmy Fairhurst's slow burn of Phil's frustration over his job, as well as his ability to provide for his family builds to a crescendo when everything finally gets on top of him and he takes drastic action. The obvious love for his wife and kids evident throughout.

Harry ( Howard Chadwick ) has the knack of winding up some of his fellow miners, but he's not the only one. His best mate, Jim, is played by Lee Toomes. Jake Waring doubles up as The Announcer as well as a miner.

The majority of the band onstage were the real thing, the Derwent Brass, with a little bit of help from a few of the actors, including the "outsider" gorgeous Gloria ( Seren Sandham-Davies ), Gloria, was also the love interest for young Andy ( Thomas Wingfield ), who pleased the ladies in the audience by appearing topless a couple of times, also worked in management at the pit. Even though she was on the side of the men, she was looked on as the "outsider" because of her job. It didn't stop her from losing hers though with the rest of the men.

Lovely performances by both Seren and Thomas with a very believable chemistry with these two old flames who rekindle their passion for each other and their horns.

Notable performances by Fraser Fowkes ( Shane ), who plays Phil's son and part time narrator. From the off, Fraser captures the character, as well as the accent, and there are many narrated parts from Fraser that will hit you right where it should do: in the heart. The role of Shane is shared with George Harling, Isaac Rothwell and William Spencer-Brown.

Lisa Allen (Vera), Kate Wood (Rita) are an excellent double act, especially in the drunken scene with Jim and Harry. Jo Mousley (Sandra) gives such a passionate performance, I'm surprised she didn't burst a blood vessel in her outbursts, albeit valid outbursts about the money not being there for essentials like food and nappies, never mind an escalating pile of unpaid bills. These three are the wives who try to keep it all together back at home, and on the picket lines.

The rest of the cast consist of Abena Halliday-Fox, Shannon John, Cheryl Mitchell, Caroline Msimanga, Maria Slack, Heather Slonimski, Emma White and Iyisha Williams.

Directed by Sarah Brigham, this is a masterpiece in Northern drama. The accents are spot on, the acting totally believable, not afraid to use many choice words throughout to reflect the anger and bitterness. And the actors actually played the instruments. And what a gorgeous sound provided by The Derwent Brass Band. A totally British sound is the sound of a brass band, a sound that is evocative, a sound that can have you marching one minute and crying the next, and when they played "Danny Boy" when Danny was in hospital, well I defy you not to feel emotional. That, and "Land Of Hope And Glory" gives you the tingles.

Musical Director is Kevin Towse, creating that evocative sound that paints as much of a picture as the set and cast.

Unfortunately, no "orange juice" scene or "Concerto D'Aranjuez".

The Set Design by Ali Allen is depressing black and white. Now, I describe it as depressing because that is the whole feel of the play, so the set reflects this. The scene with Phil as he attempts suicide has an incredibly imposing set design, which I won't give away.

Tim Skelly's Lighting Design is inobtrusive and compliments the feel of the play.

Ivan Stott's Sound Design creeps up on you with nature's soundscape, as well as sound effects that you don't really notice due to the apt placement of the effects and noises.

I have been spoiled with regional accents this past couple of weeks and making sure that the accents were accurate was the voice coach, Anita Gilbert.

Another area of excellence that does not get enough credit is the stage combat and fight co-ordination. There is a section where Phil takes a punch to the face, which looked so realistic, I winced. The Fight Director responsible for this is Ian Stapleton.

"Brassed Off" is at Derby Theatre until Saturday 28 October and I really can't rate this production highly enough for its' drama, passion and humility. Why the auditorium was not packed out I don't know, but there's plenty of time to catch this wonderful piece of theatre.