To coincide with the 30th anniversary of the Miners' Strike of 1984, we are proud to present this production of Brassed Off directed by Damian Cruden (director of Olivier Award winning The Railway Children). Read more …
It is 1992, Grimley Colliery faces the threat of closure and the future of the brass band seems uncertain. With the miners torn between redundancy packages and the picket lines, band-leader Danny’s hopes of winning the national brass band competition seem like a distant dream. But the arrival of flugelhorn-playing Gloria brings hope, romance and controversy to the Yorkshire brass band on the brink of collapse.
Featuring rousing live music including Rodrigo’s Concierto de Aranjuez and Jerusalem, Brassed Off is a funny and heart-warming drama that reaches stirring heights as a local Brass Band performs the final scene, set in the Royal Albert Hall, live on stage at the King’s.
Passionate and inspiring - a celebration of human endeavour and community spirit in triumph against all the odds.
The drama is remarkable for the honesty in which the fabled solidarity between the miners and their wives is stretched to breaking point over the cost of band subs and new instruments as bailiffs come to claim everything else.
There is sometimes a strange paradox in theatre where a stage adaptation can have a longer running time than the film it was adapted from and yet still feel considerably more rushed than its predecessor.
As well as laughter and tears, this show raises a question: in a post-union, atomised world, how can people unite?
Brassed Off is a triumph that delivers a unique portrayal into the human spirit and the importance of community as a way to tackle poverty, hardship and adversity. This is, it seems, a message that has been lost throughout the times, but a lesson that is desperately needed in society today.
Perhaps the easiest way to define the production is found within its climax, where all of the strengths of the piece are proudly displayed: the sincerity; the score; it’s theme, the political stance it takes and especially the humour. Honest and highly recommended.
King's Theatre, Edinburgh from Tuesday April 29, 2014, until Saturday May 3, 2014. More info: http://www.edtheatres.com/kings
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