‘Love Songs’ by Tom Kelly touring to 5 new venues
Baby Love Productions are touring a new play with classic
songs by celebrated North East writer, Tom Kelly, to 5 new venues in the region
and beyond.
Tom Kelly is well-known throughout the North East for both plays and musicals, including ‘Tom and
Catherine’ and ‘Geordie
The Musical’. His latest play ‘Bobby
Robson Saved My Life’ has been playing to standing ovations from South
Shields all the way to Ipswich and his much-loved musical, ‘The
Dolly Mixtures’ is to be revived from 21 August at The Customs House South
Shields.
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Tom Kelly with Helen Cash and
Jonathan Cash
(Photograph by Victoria Lamb)
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Baby Love Productions is a small
theatre company based in Blaydon that has been touring the region since 2016.
They first toured ‘Love Songs’ in October 2018 to a very positive
response. Ray Spencer MBE, Executive
Director of The Customs House South Shields said of the tour, ‘Thank goodness for @Babyloveprod who have joined a growing army of self financing
new writing production companies. Two planks & passion ensure writers like @tomkelly60 can gain a showcase for new work. “Love Songs” is
ambitious, bold & clearly heartfelt. Dark yet amusing & honest.’
British Theatre Guide said, “It’s very Tom Kelly, a
gentle story full of understanding and empathy….The songs are great; …. from
the yearning of "Somewhere" from West Side Story … to the sadness /
happiness of "Twenty Four Hours from Tulsa", and the cast get the
balance right, getting some of the mannerisms (vocal and physical) of the
singers they are paying tribute to but not attempting to mimic them….an
enjoyable evening’s theatre with just enough of the dark side to make us stop
and think.”
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| Helen Cash |
North East Theatre Guide said, “On stage the 2 actors
have wonderful voices that recreate the great hits by the likes of the Everly
Brothers, Buddy Holly, Elvis and Dusty Springfield. The highlight of the
evening for me, however, was Bridge Over Troubled Water which combined the
emotion of the original song with the impact of the drama’s storyline. “
Baby Love Productions are excited to be touring the play to
5 venues from 21 September to 17 October 2019. The tour starts at the Art Deco
treasure that is the Majestic Theatre in Darlington then takes in the lovely
Queens Hall Arts Centre in Hexham. Next is the intimate Seven Arts Centre in Leeds
and the cosy Dovecote Centre in Amble. The tour finishes with two performances
in the state-of-the-art new studio at the People’s Theatre in Heaton, Newcastle.
The new play features an array of classic songs, such as Bridge Over Troubled Water, Somewhere, True
Love Ways, Love Me Tender & Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow. These songs are performed by the two
protagonists as part of a 60s tribute tour.
The play deals with themes of
mental health and domestic abuse as the two lead characters face up to their
own demons to have a chance at building a life together. Meanwhile the play
features the quirky characters that people the tribute tour, some of them
unable to separate themselves from the icons they portray, with often comical
consequences.
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| Jonathan Cash |
Tom wrote the play for his friends,
and next-door neighbours, real-life married couple, Helen and Jonathan Cash,
after initially working with them on a revival of his play, Baby Love. Jonathan, who both directs and acts in the
play, explained, “We had a great time working with Tom on Baby Love and
had the joy of experiencing at first hand the emotional impact his writing has
on audiences. It’s the authenticity of his characters and the depth of feeling
he brings to his writing that makes his work so satisfying, both to watch and
to perform. It’s a privilege to have a play written for us by one of the
region’s foremost playwrights. We’re just extremely lucky he happens to be our
friend. Also living just next door makes it really easy to get together for
rehearsals.”
Jonathan admits the play has its challenges, “We
have to perform songs made famous by the greatest singers of the 60s, including
Dusty Springfield, Elvis, Gene Pitney and Marvin Gaye, plus we’re taking on the
notoriously challenging Bridge Over Troubled Water. No small task, but really rewarding. It’s the
mix of the powerful script and these terrific songs that I think will make the
show so satisfying for audiences. We also get to play some lovely comic
characters along the way.”
Tom Kelly said, “After the success
of Baby Love’s tour, I wanted to write something to capitalise on the
talents of Helen and Jonathan and, as they are both singers as well as actors,
it seemed a shame not to use that. Also, I love these songs and tribute tours
are the bread and butter of many of our local theatres nowadays. It seemed very
current to use that as a background to address subjects like mental health and
the impact of domestic abuse in a believable and ultimately positive way.
Audiences have clearly responded to that.”
On The Web:
Tickets:
Darlington Majestic Theatre on Saturday 21 September. http://www.majestictheatre-lee.com/box-office.html
Hexham Queens Hall Arts Centre on Friday 27
September https://www.queenshall.co.uk/whats-on
Leeds
Seven Arts Centre on Saturday 5 October
Amble
Dovecote Centre on Saturday 12 October.
Tel: 01665 713655
Newcastle People’s Theatre (Studio) in Heaton on Wednesday 16
and Thursday 17 October.
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