Written by Gary Barlow and Tim Firth and directed by Jonathan O’Boyle, the newly reimagined musical adaptation of the 2003 smash-hit movie is back on tour for the first time since 2019, and the cast list alone is enough to spark excitement. 

Based on the now world-famous true events of a group of middle-aged women in Yorkshire, Calendar Girls The Musical follows the story of the members of the Knapley Women’s Institute. Annie (Tanya Franks), is devastated following the loss of her husband John (Colin R Campbell) to cancer. With her friend Chris (Amy Robbins), they hit on the idea of creating a nude calendar featuring members of the WI to raise money for a new sofa in the visitors lounge of the hospital where John received treatment. But can they get approval from the notoriously traditional Women’s Institute and will they be able to convince their fellow WI members Ruth (Maureen Nolan), Jessie (Lyn Paul), Celia (Marti Webb), Cora (Honeysuckle Weeks) and self-proclaimed leader Marie (Paula Tapenden) to participate?

Right from the opening scene it was clear that the cast had plenty of chemistry and camaraderie, and while it was a little slow as the characters were established, there were high levels of emotion as we watched Franks’ sensitive portrayal of a woman who is slowly losing the man she loves. However, it is in Act II  where each character really comes into their own, with plenty of laugh-out-loud moments (particularly from Robbins and Marti Webb) and cheers from the audience as each one poses for their ’nude’ photograph. All credit goes to each of them – especially Honeysuckle Weeks who left almost nothing to the imagination. 

While the musical numbers were pleasant, I found many of them to be unnecessary and repetitive and after a while seemed to serve the purpose of padding rather than plot development. Amy Robbins as Chris was certainly the stand out performer vocally, and collectively someone of the songs were quite powerful, but it fell a little short considering the sheer wealth of talent and decades of experience on the stage and this can’t be blamed entirely on the performers. 

Gary McCann’s set and Nick Richings’ lighting were simple but very effective, with the main set of a small town community hall easily transformed into a hospital with the addition of drop down signs and small amounts of furniture. 

Despite lacking musically, Calendar Girls is still heart-warming, emotive and lots of fun as it progresses, and the second act alone deserved the standing ovation received from the Birmingham audience at the end. 

Calendar Girls The Musical is on stage at The Alexandra Theatre until Saturday 7th October. Purchase your tickets here.