One of the stipulations of the Bechdel test, designed to measure the representation of women in film, is that female characters should talk about something other than men. Richard Cameron’s 2002 play about Yorkshire pit workers would fail Alison Bechdel’s requirements at the first hurdle – it has six actors, all of them male – but tune in to what they’re talking about and there’s a curious inversion.
Although the conversation embraces the topics you’d expect to hear among early-1960s Yorkshire miners, from rail accidents to industrial disputes, it returns repeatedly to the women in the men’s lives. There’s the wife who has left an 18-year marriage, the girlfriend who absconds for an illegal abortion, the family of four daughters, and the mother who has died leaving three children behind.
None of this qualifies as a feminist statement but it casts a softer-than-average light over a profession typically seen as macho and emotionally muted. That’s even more the case given that these men, having washed off the coal dust, perform as the Glee Club singers, a close-harmony combo who are all charm, delicacy and natty dance moves.
In Kate Wasserberg’s classy production for Out of Joint, Cast and Kiln, the actors revel in the contrast between the tough camaraderie of the pits and the subtle collaboration of their music. The emerging story about homosexuality and blackmail further tests team spirit and the outing of Eamonn Riley’s pianist Phil Newsome causes friction, but compassion triumphs over prejudice.
As a popular drama, The Glee Club is unusual in two ways. One is that much of the action takes place off stage. That worked for the Greeks, but here it lessens the dramatic punch. The other is that although it has the appearance of a wish-fulfilment comedy as the men set their sights on a summer gala singing competition, its dominant tone is wistful and reflective. It’s less about a Billy Elliot-style achievement than a quiet analysis of the ties that bind.
That’s no bad thing and, with the excellent musical direction of Dyfan Jones on Mark Bailey’s symmetrical pithead set, it adds up to a satisfying ensemble performance.
• At Cast, Doncaster, until 7 March. Then touring until 27 June.
