ENTERTAINMENT 23
1 . Bridget , what inspired you to direct this particular play ?
When searching for my next play to direct , it was important to me to find a play that had lots of female characters ; we have so many fabulous actresses in this town and there are never enough roles for them ! This play , ' Pack of Girls ', is a comedy , and I absolutely love comedy . Audiences love comedy , too and that ’ s always an important consideration . ' Pack of Girls ' is also about our national obsession - rugby , and I thought it would be fun to bring sport and theatre together .
2 . Tell us a little about the ‘ Pack of Girls ’ story .
Set in a small , rural New Zealand town , ' Pack of Girls ' is centred around local mum Pam Hooper . She ’ s married to her stock agent husband Tom Hooper , a hot-shot rugby player ( or so he thinks ). After years of feeling sidelined by the game , and ignored by her husband , Pam decides that if she can ’ t beat ’ em , she ’ ll join them , and puts together a seven-a-side women ’ s rugby team to play in the local town competition . The team is a motley group of local mums , all in it for their own reasons . The play follows their formation , their first practices and then we see them play ! Yes , a rugby game live on stage !
3 . What excites you most about bringing this production to Marlborough ?
What excites me most is bringing rugby to the stage and trying to make it as true to form as possible while in the confines of our wee Boathouse Theatre . No easy task I can assure you ! The game scene is tremendously challenging . It ’ s a long , choreographed rugby sequence ; we ’ re putting hours into it to hopefully get it just right ! I ’ m also enjoying getting to know the cast too ; they all have their own rugby stories and they are passionate about bringing this game and play to life .
4 . What can we expect the cast to bring to the stage ? Tell us a little about the main cast members .
Pam Hooper is played by Jode Hughes , who was Donna in Mamma Mia a couple of years ago . She is a fantastic , energetic actress . Chris Valli plays her husband Tom . Chris is a local primary school teacher and he ’ s a rugby nut too . Jode and Chris have acted together before and have a great friendship which really comes across on stage . Cheryl McNamara ( no relation ), Jess Cox and Linda van Kuyk are getting into their characters of Lucy , Hazel and Trish with gusto . Special mention must go to Margaret Pringle ( Carol ) who has put her body on the line for this play already ! She is a fabulous comedic actress - she will be a delight to watch . Abby James plays
DPB , her character is due to give birth any moment . Abby , in research for the role , has been finding out all about what it ’ s like to be pregnant - much to her horror ! Finally , Doug Owen , Darryn Bishop and Paul Southey have all been roped in to be the male rugby players on the field . It ' s a great cast and they are going to be incredibly funny !
5 . What are some of the interesting insights happening behind the scenes ?
What we ’ re working through at the moment is how to pad the stage floor so actors can tackle and be tackled safely . We ’ ve had a wrestling trainer come in and teach us how to fall properly , too . We ’ ve also had amazing support from rugby clubs etc . lending us uniforms . Another cool thing that ’ s happened is the playwright , David Geary , who now resides in Canada , has tracked us down through Facebook and offered his support .
6 . What can the audience look forward to from the production ?
Pack of Girls is an out and out comedy , full of great jokes and lots of rugby related humour . The energy and pace is going to be high however there are some really insightful moments too . I think the audience can expect another great night at the Boathouse Theatre .
7 . What are some of your highlights directing this production ?
Getting contact from the playwright has been a real buzz as has the support from the rugby community . It ’ s a real collaboration with a great group of people and I am very thankful to everyone who is involved and to the family members at home who support them too .
8 . What is special about the arts in our region that Marlburians are lucky to have available to them ?
This year is the 70th year of the Marlborough Repertory Society , it ’ s also Blenheim Musical Theatre ’ s centenary too . That ’ s a long time to have been around !
It ’ s local people and their volunteer time who has made that happen . I hope that future volunteers in all the areas continue stepping up , that is what it takes to keep the society forging ahead . Why ? So that young and old alike have the opportunity to go to the theatre in their own town and see something that will entertain them , or make them think , and leave the theatre feeling inspired .
Final word …
Pack of Girls - get your team together and grab those tickets today !
Productions Director Bridget McNamara
20th-30th June
( excluding Monday 25th June )
7.30pm except Sunday 24th June @ 4.00pm
Book at Ticketek via asbtheatre . com or boathousetheatre . co . nz