REVIEW: BLAZE OF GLORY! @ THEATRE ROYAL PLYMOUTH

🎭 Blaze of Glory!

📍  The Lyric, Theatre Royal Plymouth, Royal Parade, Plymouth, Devon, PL1 2TR

🗓 Thursday 23rd April 2026

⭐️ 4 Stars

HILARIOUS HYMN TO WALES

Once again, the Welsh National Opera raise their lovely voices in song for our pleasure but this time it comes with a delightful twist. This time, rather than tales of old, the hymn of praise is raised to the Welsh mining communities in the 1950s. Men who daily risk their lives in the Pit, women who keep everything else going whilst the National Coal Board are “rationalising” the pits making livelihoods ever less certain.

It is early morning in the Rhondda and the womenfolk of a mining town greet each other on their doorsteps to discuss their menfolk. An recent pit disaster robbed the area of many miners; the grief of such a devastating loss still reverberates through everyone’s lives. The women bemoan the emasculating effect this has had and decide to act for “This is a story about Men!”

In the local social club, Mr Pugh, miner and former leader of the town’s Male Voice Choir, broods over his pint. Encouraged by the women, led by the dauntless Miss Price, the men entreat him to build another choir to boost morale. He declines saying the guilt of the accident is too much and besides there are too few men left. After much persuasion he reluctantly agrees, the Bethesda Glee Choir is born.

The unlikely adventures of this choir are riotously funny. There is much banter between the choristers, fierce rivalry with neighbouring towns and antics involving hijacking members from other choirs for their yodelling ability.  With the sombre pithead as a backdrop, the show utilises the ever-mobile elements of the ingenious set to transport us from pit to club to pub, via charabanc, to Eisteddfod and back.  Scene shifts carried out with a smile and a song, often by the captivating Bronwen, Blodwen and Branwen, add so much to the fun of the whole. The use of miner’s lamps and clever spotlighting changes the mood with powerful effect.

Unsurprisingly for me the greatest pleasure is the music, as one would expect of the WNO! Even the Welsh names of the characters, reminiscent of Dylan Thomas, sound musical. Set firmly in the demure 50s, mingling close harmonies, Do Wop, bluesy jazz with beautiful Welsh hymns is a simply brilliant innovation conveying both the feel of the era and the cheekiness of the tale. We bask in the haunting, exquisite voices singing in Welsh and moments later are tapping our toes to Welsh Rarebit, the local version of the Andrews Sisters. The definition of an opera no longer matters, it is wonderfully joyous, so who cares? 

As this is also a story of Wales, the politics of the time affecting miners locally and worldwide are also a continuous thread running through the narrative, pertinent but not overbearing. The “NC bloody B” has frequent namechecks during the production, usually accompanied by a disgusted tone of voice or expression. A reminder of the times also comes with the black American GI, one of many who has made his home there after the war. Any racial interaction is summarily dealt with, as it was back then, by the phrase, “We are all black underground!” We are also reminded of the legendary singer and worker’s rights activist, Paul Robeson’s connections with the Welsh NUM. Denied a passport by the USA government he addressed an Eisteddfod via a transatlantic phone link to express his solidarity. 

The WNO, always innovative and engaging, have created something very special with BLAZE OF GLORY! What a fabulous show to tour in their 80th anniversary year. Their pride in the homeland manifests itself unashamedly. The heartwarming addition of a local male voice choir, Blokes Who Sing, joining the WNO and the orchestra in singing the gorgeous, “Gwahoddiad” at the end sends the music into the stratosphere and may just have brought a tear to my eye…

Rosie Sharman-Ward

All views are my own and I pride myself on being honest, fair and free from influence. Theatre is subjective and it is important to remember that all views expressed are just those of one person.

My ticket for this performance of Blaze of Glory was gifted by Theatre Royal Plymouth who invited me to watch the show on behalf of Pink Prince Theatre in exchange for my honest review. The fact that my ticket was gifted played no part in the content of my review or the star rating given.

CAST LIST:

Jeffrey Lloyd-Roberts as Mr Dafydd Pugh; Rebecca Evans as Miss Nerys Price; Themba Mvula as Anthony; Feargal Mostyn-Williams as Bryn Bevan; Adam Gilbert as Emlyn; Mark Llewelyn Evans as Caradog Probert; Angharad Morgan as Bronwen; Lea Ahaw as Blodwen; Angharad Lyddon as Branwen

Members of the WNO Chorus

RUNNING TIME (approx):

2 hours 25 minutes, including interval

CONTENT WARNINGS:

Strobes; Flashing lights; Haze; Simulated violence; Drug use; Mature sexual themes

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