![](https://www.sardinesmagazine.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/GFTNC2022JP_11949-Edit-jpg.webp)
Show: Girl from the North Country
Society: New Victoria Theatre (professional productions)
Venue: New Victoria Theatre. The Ambassadors, The Peacocks Centre, Woking, Surrey GU21 6GQ
Credits: Written & Directed by Conor McPherson. Music & Lyrics by Bob Dylan. Produced by Runaway Entertainment, Steven Lappin, Sony Music Entertainment UK, Playing Field, David Mirvish, Dianne Roberts and The Old Vic
Type: Sardines
Performance Date: 22/11/2022
Girl From the North Country
Image: Johan Persson
Call me old-fashioned but I always believed that a trip out to the theatre to see a musical was always going to be a feel-good event.
Not any more. Not in Woking’s New Victoria Theatre. Not this week.
This week Conor McPherson’s Girl from the North Country is in town. Featuring the sings of Bob Dylan, McPherson has created a critically acclaimed play about nothing really and the creator of The Weir has not only got away with it but he’s also received plaudits! Perhaps it really is brilliant and I saw the musical ‘drama’ on an off-day but… well, I really don’t know.
The show doesn’t even include what was aruably Dylan’s geatest hit, Blowin’ in the Wind. Alongside Like a Rolling Stone (which IS included), Blowin’ in the Wind is the probably song most people would recognise. I GUESS IT IS JUST TOO UPBEAT. I call a case of The Emporer’s New Clothes here. I may sound like a philistine but people don’t go to the theatre to spend their hard-earned cash on being depressed; the world’s quite good at that already. We want to be uplifted and given a couple of hours off ‘life’.
Girl from the North Country is set in the American town of Duluth in 1934 the same year a huge American drought ruined millions and millions of crops. The action (we’ll call it ‘action’ for now) all takes place in Nick Laine’s (Colin Conner) guesthouse which is on the verge of closing down. By the way, nobody has much money, did I mention that. Even Nick’s wife, Elizabeth (Frances McNamee) suffers from a mental disability and often withdraws into her own world. Various characters come and go beore Nick finally announces the establishment is to close down. That it, that’s the plot of the show.
When you add the Music and Lyrics of Bob Dylan, then you can bet that that the varying states of depression will probably heighten. But that’s what Dylan’s songs are all about at the end of the day; protesting and gloom. In another review I read that ‘Dylan read McPherson’s script, liked it, and gave permission for him to go ahead.’ I bet he did!
As I was reviewing the entire show I obviously couldn’t join the countless other audience members and make for the nearest exit st the interval, and that’s despite the professional and talented cast of actor-musicians doing their best with what they’d been given but even the onstage music was spread out right across the New Victoria Theatre’s vast playing space. Drums on one side and piano right over on the other. Some very odd choices are going on here. Give me a great NON-professional show any day!
Apologies for being so miserable, you might love it. Actually, I’ve just thought of a great new title; I’m in full Bob Dylan mode now… The Miserables!