Quick march to see Hannah musical premiere at Spa
Love story between hairdresser and soldier was a funny, moving, pop tune-filled hit
Wow! Wow! Wow! How exciting to have been one of the first people to see a home-grown musical – Hannah – the Soldier Diaries – premiere at the Scarborough Spa.
There is so much to be positive about the stage show written and produced by Steve Wallis, who moved to the town six years ago – based on his audiobook of the same name.
That contains 11 narrated chapters with each chapter being complimented by its own song.
In a nutshell – when hairdresser Hannah meets Lance Corporal Jack Webb in the summer of 2012 she is smitten. They enjoy a whirlwind four-week affair before Jack has to return to the Army to fight in the Afghan War.
As she does for the audiobook, Zoe Wright played Hannah, a 20-something Scarborough lass with a sunny disposition looking for Mr Right Now – and if he becomes a more permanent fixture in her life all well and good,
Zoe will be familiar to Scarborough audiences from the Tony Peers summer shows in recent years at the Spa.
She has a clear-as-a-bell voice suited perfectly to the 13 original songs with a pop beat by Nik Martin – Scarboroughbased musical studio owner and writer of the catchy ‘big fish, little fish, cardboard box’ tune.
Soldier Jack was played by Stephen Alexander, who costarred with Zoe in Summer Show Encore at the Spa last year. He is from an Army family who live on the right side of the tracks in the capital of posh Yorkshire – Harrogate.
The clash of cultures and class is one of the underlying themes of the show.
Almost stealing the show was Scarborough-based and Spa audience favourite Linda Newport whose part as the merry widow Mrs M allowed her to give full rein to her trademark nudge-nudge, wink-wink flirtatiousness. She was a joy to watch.
There was a cameo for the D-Day Darlings who looked stunning in Remembrance poppy-patterned dresses and sounded ‘fab-u-lous darlings’ – as they sang a song reminiscent of World War Two’s Forces sweetheart Vera Lynn’s hits.
The musical started on a sombre and serious note – with a recorded foreward by Ross Kemp who, of course, made a documentary about soldiers in Afghanistan.
It reminded the audience of the legacy of that war, how many service personnel lost their lives or were injured and who are still living with the consequences of conflict.
It also put Hannah and Jack’s love affair into context, the jeopardy Jack faced on his return to the frontline and the fragility that meant for their romance and relationship.
To give away too much of the plot would be to rob future audiences of the joy of watching Hannah and Jack’s affair unravel. Highlights, though, include the awkwardness of Hannah meeting the ‘in-laws’, the poignancy of a railway station goodbye and the tension of the wait for news when Jack goes missing in action.
Other major roles were played by Karon Wallis as Jack’s mum, Darren Johnson as his dad and who also directs, and Flynn Denton as his brother Gary.
Chiela Robertson and Evie Blakey played Hannah’s hairdressing colleagues the gloriously dim and dimmer Liv and Britt.
Of the songs the opening number Butterflies – about the first flurries of love – Mrs M’s two-fingered salute to life’s tribulations Funk IT – and I’m So Glad That I’m Me – Hannah’s shout out to her ex – are the best. Jack’s rap which undercuts some of the more schmalzy of the songs’ sentiments was a delight.
The quality of the production is superb, celebrating all that is best about Scarborough with threedimensional backdrops of neon-lit South Bay, Luna Park and Peasholm – and its seaside character complete with kiss-me-quick hats.
‘Brilliant’ and ‘I’ve had my hanky out already’ were two of the responses from the friends I saw the show with.
Hannah – the Soldier Diaries is a funny, moving, pop tune-filled, uplifting experience that is also a timely reminder of how fragile peace is and how what is happening miles away can be brought to our doorstep. When it is in the West End, we can say we saw it here first.