AFTER a blast of 1950s foot-tapping music in the first half of what purports to be the story of 50 years of the Manchester dance scene, I was in mellow mood.

During the interval there was a 1970s interlude on stage during which energetic members of the audience danced with the performers. I could cope with that.

But the production floundered in the second half which had all the hallmarks of a sixth form end of term production, and not a particularly good one at that.

Described rather grandly as involving the Royal Exchange Theatre Company and The People of Greater Manchester, the show clearly had worthy intentions. And the cast of professionals and amateurs has obviously worked hard on their dance routines. But the result failed to hold my attention.

The current club scene, with its drug culture, is depicted as being full of boring and foul-mouthed people who would not be entertaining in real life and are not on stage. That may be an accurate reflection of life, but it does not make for good theatre. A couple of simulated sex scenes (fully clothed) did nothing to relieve the tackiness.

Two actors Katy Cavanagh - Jill in the 1950s and Natasha in the 1990s - and Michael Begley as Terry and Ben from similar periods did sterling work.

Katy, a Bolton-born actress, was funny in both her roles, She brought out the pathos of Jill who gave her all, only to be rejected. And her celebrity-hunting Natasha was a delight.

Begley, first as the National Service squaddie and later as the free-spirited Ben, showed sensitivity in both roles. But they, and the rest of the cast, were badly let down by the turgid and rambling action. Writers Stephen Keyworth and Bill Taylor allowed the characters to drift about to little effect.

The plot, slight though it was, lost its way in the second half, and it was difficult to feel any sympathy for the characters. The urge to tell all of them to "Get on with it" instead of prancing and posturing about the stage was hard to resist.

One wonders why directors Marianne Elliott and Gregory Hersov allowed the action to meander so aimlessly. Stuart Wood has designed a simple but effective set with numerous mirror balls rotating above the stage areas.

Apparently one of the names suggested for the play was Glittering Balls. It was as well that was not adopted. The temptation to use one of those words in a headline might have been too hard to resist.

The production is at Lowton High School (July 16 to 19) and The Castle Armoury, Bury (July 30 to August 2). Doreen Crowther

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