(Touring) Life Begins

I am now 40 years old, and 18 years in to my theatrical career, having started touring with my first show in 2004. I think this is my 14th circuit of the UK (someone in the cast asked me to try and count them) and Girl From The North Country is my 37th professional show. I think that’s enough numbers for now, though!

Dublin is not a bad city at all to celebrate such a big milestone, and to be able to spend it with so many new mates from my new company made it pretty special. My parents even took the time to pop over to Ireland to spoil me rotten, and a perfectly-timed show watch on my actual birthday was made possibly by original Musical Director Alan Berry agreeing to fly over to cover the conducting responsibilities. All in all it made for a fabulous birthday!

The show itself played all 41 performances, even though it was faced with a severe covid outbreak, tummy bugs, a power outage and even a fire next door one night, and the audiences were on their feet at the end of every performance. Although understudies were thrown on at short notice left, right and centre, we managed a fair amount of regular cover rehearsals before the run ended. Socially, we aimed to ‘discover’ as many nearby pubs and bars as we could, and Sundays were the perfect opportunity to explore the farther reaches of Dublin and the surrounding hills and coasts.

The show is now on a welcome two-week hiatus. After a pretty intense rehearsal and tech period, the show itself has its own beautiful intensity, and the whole company have become heavily invested in delivering what is a pretty super show each time. It was pretty clear on the flight home, though, that R&R and catch-ups with friends & family were now at the forefront of most people’s minds! We will all be back later this month, fully refreshed, ready to show the United Kingdom this rather brilliant piece of theatre. For now, though, I have a few days seeing friends in London before a few days back in Cheshire with the family.