Sheffield’s Lyceum Theatre’s The Full Monty is making its way to London’s West End next year for the first time.
The 1997 movie release was the year that saw the most revealing comedy – with a group of money hungry men unzipping their dignity through their trousers under the shadow of Thatcherism.
After the movie release, Yorkshire born and Oscar winning screenwriter, Simon Beaufoy brought the crew back to revive the story in its narrative setting, Sheffield. And so the Lyceum Theatre audiences rediscovered the humour, the heartache at the expense of their own city’s catastrophic history.
- Source: Daily Telegraph
Sheffield Theatres said: “This is Simon Beaufoy ’s first work for the theatre. His screen credits include the BAFTA Award-winning The Full Monty, 127 Hours, Salmon Fishing in the Yemen and Slumdog Millionaire, for which he won an Oscar.”
The Full Monty is about a group of unemployed Sheffield steel workers who decide their only way to bring in any income at all is to form a male striptease act. The main character Gaz, in order to unite and form a better relationship with his son, decides their show will be better than their opposing striptease act (Chippendale) because their group will indeed go ‘the full monty’ and strip all the way.
Though the film spreads humour across its audience through most scenes, the film also touches on sensitive subjects like, depression, life as a working class and homosexuality.
The BBC said: “The play stays true to the tale of the unemployed Sheffield mates who find themselves on the scrap heap of life after their factory shuts.”
Earlier this year in February, Dominic Cavendish from the Telegraph said: “After an American musical version that drew insufficient oohs and ahhs of delight in London 11 years ago, The Full Monty has now been reborn as an uproariously entertaining Eighties-set play scripted by its creator Simon Beaufoy.
“West End producers are dying to get their mitts on it, and small wonder. It more than measures up, delivering the same tongue-in-cheek thrills and shiver-inducing redundancy sob-stories but the potent added layer is that the ageing lads now get their kit off in front of a living, breathing, very steamed-up crowd.”
London audiences will see Lyceum’s The Full Monty with its West End performance – reviving the story for Sheffield steel workers for all.
It will be shown at the Noel Coward Theatre in London for 16 weeks, between February and June 2014.
- Noel Coward
Source: Covent Garden Theatres
In 2012, Beaufoy told the BBC: “Without Sheffield, there would be no Full Monty. It’s been a long road – via Hollywood – but finally the characters are coming back home to the place it all started.
“Or to put it another way, we are all genuinely chuffed to bits.”
This will be the first time the West End will see The Fully Monty and expectations are high are for audience entertainment.
Customer Services Executive Nathan at West End’s Noel Coward Theatre said: “As it is the West End, we do attract a large crowd for majority of our shows. Most of the time, people already know the story of what they are going to watch so they enjoy it.
“And with The Full Monty, people do know the story and they find it a very interesting one. It was a movie first, so prospects for the theatre show will be something very exciting, with regards especially to the visual aesthetics of the infamous striptease scenes.”
Nathan said performing for the first time at the West End should definitely be a hit.
Lyceum Sheffield’s Sales Assistant for the Box Office, Pat, suggests the show will be as great as the success it has received at the Lyceum before.
“Because it was a national hit, and audiences in America have seen the movie too, it will do exceptionally well at the West End as well. London has a much larger population and tourist footfall compared to other cities in England, so it’s no doubt it will be a winner there too.” Said Pat.
Pat said: “Everyone has heard of it, it’s not just a local phenomenon. But for the Sheffield audience it was amazing.”
She said the movie alone was very funny but seeing everything live in front of you is even better.
“The movie is very good and in some ways, true to life for our local audience. It was set in the 90’s, of course a lot has changed since then so some parts are no longer relevant.
“But that’s the beauty of it, we get to regress back to history for a while, understand the hardship of jobless steelworkers, but still have a laugh at the same time.” She said.
Pat said she has watched the movie three times, and the play twice. And every time has had the same reaction to the comedy.
“It wasn’t a shock, the first time I watched it, because I knew what to expect. Watching it as a play is a lot funnier because you share the comedy and laughter with the rest of the audience too.” She said.
The West End should expect nothing less than what it’s revealed to its Sheffield audience.
Pat said it’s a great play because the actors interact with the audience too, allowing them to be a part of the scenes and really get the energy flowing through their audience.
Another Sales Assistant at the Box Office, Chris, shares the same hopes for the West End and said it will do as well as it has done everywhere else.
“It’s a marvelous production. Though I have only seen it once, which I think that’s enough for me, it was so wonderful. And the scenes will forever be with me. Luckily for us ladies.”
She said this is the first time their production will be performing at the West End and suggests there will have plenty of thrills and laughs coming their way.
Tickets are already on sale on: www.uktheatretickets.co.uk
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