The 1984 miners' strike was a disaster for the communities involved. I wonder what comfort they take in knowing that their struggle has inspired a rather superior strain of screenplays-cum-stage musicals.
Billy Elliott, the Elton John Years, is wowing London's West End, while Paul Allen's adaptation of Mark Herman's film has been through many incarnations. None, however, is more poignant than this version, rewritten to reflect the destruction of the Welsh mining industry.
Director Terry Hands initially toured this production around the valleys, where it reduced tough former pit workers to tears. Returning to Clwyd for a final run, it brings the entire audience to its feet. Admittedly, it's a blast of the Welsh national anthem that does it, but Hands's surprise inclusion of Hen Wlad fy Nhadau underlines the additional surge of power the piece gains in this context.
Herman's original concept was an expression of regional pride; Hands jacks it up to a national level. As you witness the destruction of a community's heart and soul, you become painfully aware that it is the vindictive action of a foreign administration. So when the colliery band plays Land of Our Fathers at the Royal Albert Hall, it's a cry of defiance delivered right at the heart of the establishment. The piece showcases the strength of Hands's excellent Clwyd ensemble, and puts the community right at the heart of the action with a roster of five Welsh bands providing the accompaniment.
Wales may no longer have a mining industry to speak of, but it remains the heartland of the amateur movement. Brassed Off both celebrates and perpetuates that tradition: it is community drama with bells on, and mouthpieces attached.
• Until Saturday, then at the Coal Exchange, Cardiff, June 7 to 16. Box office for both venues: 0845 330 3565.
