GIRLFRIENDS
Chapter Arts Centre, Cardiff
Tue 15-Sat 19 May
With the centenary of both women’s right to vote and the foundation of the RAF this year, what better way to acknowledge both at once than with Howard Goodall’s musical Girlfriends? Brought to Chapter Arts Centre courtesy of Cardiff’s Everyman Theatre and set during the early stages of World War II, the show follows the lives of WAAF (Women’s Auxiliary Air Force) personnel, their personal and work-related lives interwoven against the backdrop of a world at war and presented in a gutsy musical medium by these courageous and fantastic ladies.
Our heroines are just as important to ending the oppressive regime of those blighters overseas as that of the brave pilots above our heads, supporting the Royal Air Force with strength and intelligence in their Bomber Command base – fascism doesn’t stand a chance against the choral melodies and enjoyable pace of this show. Although it may not seem like the easiest or indeed the most fitting of subjects for a musical, it does deliver humour without distracting from the gravity of the situation, and the music provides a light relief to this moving and inspiring portrayal of the WAAF and their sterling efforts during WWII.
Tickets: £12/£10. Info: 44 (0)29 2030 4400 / chapter.org.uk (JP)