Review: Close The Coalhouse Door, Northern Stage, Newcastle
MINING MEMORIES... Nicholas Lumley as Thomas in Close the Coalhouse Door. (Picture Keith Pattison)CLOSE the Coalhouse Door was always a collaborative effort.
Written in the late 1960s by Jarrow lad Alan Plater, it was based on stories by Tyneside writer Sid Chaplin, with songs by Alex Glasgow, from Gateshead.
In this updated production, additional material has been added by Lee Hall, he of Billy Elliot and the Pitmen Painters fame.
It’s a co-production between Northern Stage and Live Theatre, and is directed by Samuel West.
The play centres on a family gathering in a North East pit village where the past is readily invoked: union leader Tommy Hepburn and Jarrow pitman William Jobling – hanged and gibbeted for the murder of 71-year-old magistrate Nicholas Fairles – are name-checked.
We are given a potted history of the coal industry in a music hall style, balancing information, comedy and poignancy.
Director West’s tight and inventive direction has cast members playing musical instruments, which adds a new dimension to the show.
The cast are strong in what is an essentially ensemble piece, but particular mention must be made to Chris Connel (Jackie), Jane Holman (Mary) and David Nellist (Geordie) who not so much play their roles, as inhabit them.
Close the Coalhouse Door reminds us of what we had and once again need. It lives and breathes a true sense of community, of shared values.
As the play says: “It might be history to some people. To us it’s family, pet.”
* Close The Coalhouse Door runs until May 5. For tickets, call 230 5151
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