Theatre Review: Girl From The North Country

AD: This Press Night Review refers to the 2022/2023 Touring Production of Girl From The North Country at the Alexandra Theatre, Birmingham*

The bloke with the harmonica. Blowin’ In The Wind. Like a Rolling Stone. Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door.

That’s it – the extent of my Bob Dylan knowledge. But anyone with a passing interest in music will be aware of the impact of his musical genius over the past 60 years, particularly within the civil rights movement. And Girl From The North Country is a bold re-imagining of some of his most loved numbers.

Award-winning playwright Conor Mcpherson directs this play-with-songs, written at the request of Dylan himself. It has been a hit on Broadway, in the West End and now on it’s first UK tour. And hot off the press, Girl In The North Country is about to be made into a film, starring Olivia Colman and Woody Harrelson among its cast.

This winding episodic tale weaves together the stories of a group of lost souls in a scruffy Minnesota boarding house in 1934. Small town America is sinking beneath the weight of the Great Depression. The landlord, Nick Laine (Colin Connor) faces financial ruin. His wife Elizabeth (Frances McNamee) is living with an unnamed mental illness, emotionally detached from her family. Their adopted daughter Marianne (Justina Kehinde) is pregnant and unwed. Their son Gene (Gregor Milne) is workshy, a dreamer and an alcoholic.

Residents include the widowed Mrs Neilsen (Maria Omakinwa), and the Burke family, struggling to cope with poverty and a son with a learning disability. Bible salesman Reverend Marlowe (Eli James) and boxer Joe Scott (Joshua C Jackson) arrive late one night during a storm. It’s a turning point for the Laines as this odd combination of characters cross their path, and they all begin to temporarily co-exist as a family. Albeit a dysfunctional one. Relationships are created and broken. Nick’s plans to marry Marianne to a rich local businessman crumble as she falls for the mysterious boxer.

It’s a Mike Leigh style kitchen sink drama, played out before our eyes. But despite the bleakness of the character’s situations, Girl from the North Country is far from maudlin. In fact, it’s surprisingly uplifting and heartwarming.

The audience enters to a dark backdrop, with a few isolated spotlights. The set evolves to reflect the guesthouse interior, with many scenes taking place around the kitchen table. The stage design by Rae Smith reflects the melancholic mood, complemented by beautiful use of atmospheric shadow and light thanks to Mark Henderson. Smith also designs the costumes, skilfully transporting the audience to another time and place, one which is stark, simple and entrenched in poverty.

Dylan’s music is sprinkled throughout the show, giving poignancy to the vignettes. Setting these poetic songs into a different time period, separated from his distinctive voice, gives the lyrics new meaning. All of the music is performed onstage, with a cast full of talented actor-musicians casually picking up the period instruments which are scattered around the set. The familiar Dylan songs have been beautifully arranged for this production by Simon Hale, with simple, pared-back versions, many sung into traditional style microphones

The singing is superb, and performed with such deep emotion. The whole cast are outstanding vocally, and it’s difficult to single out individual performances. Justina Kehinda is a stunning Marianne, and Rebecca Thornhill impresses as Mrs Burke, devoted to her son Elias (Ross Carswell). Colin Connor’s Nick is fiery, angry and tired of struggling. Connor perfectly conveys the precipice that Nick finds himself on as he juggles multiple challenges.

Frances McNamee is a delight as the troubled Elizabeth, dancing with abandon and always ready with a deadpan retort. She characterises her illness well, with awkward fidgeting and defiant silences. Yet her vocals are truly capable of causing a spine to tingle. It’s a mesmerising performance, particularly “Like a Rolling Stone” which builds from a solo number into a powerful ensemble piece.

Some may find the play a little slow at time in the first act, but this pace is necessary to truly understand the impact of the struggles each character is experiencing.

Whether you’re a Dylan fan or not, this is a powerful and poignant show. The raw and poetic performances will stay with me for a long long time

The Girl From The North Country is at the Alexandra Theatre, Birmingham until Saturday 11th February 2023. Purchase your tickets here. The UK Tour continues until March 2023; for a full list of dates, visit the Girl From The North Country official website.

All Photo Credits: Johan Persson