Back to the ‘60’s with Shout – the Mod Musical at Town Hall

It’s back to the 1960s this Friday night at the city’s Town Hall Theatre with Shout – the Mod Musical.

This musical, which premiered in New York in the early 2000s, is a nostalgic nod to London’s Swinging Sixties as it follows five young women from 1960 to 1970.

The five women don’t know each other – the only thing they have in common is that they subscribe to a fictional magazine called Shout! which advertises itself as “the magazine for the modern woman”.

Shout – the Mod Musical and its all-female cast reflect the changes of the 1960s through the music of the era, with songs from such iconic figures as Dusty Springfield, Petula Clark, Cilla Black and Lulu.  These female performers reflected the changing attitudes of the decade, when women’s rights became an issue in the UK and then in Ireland.

The show contains new arrangements of classic pop anthems of the decade, including, Downtown, Son of a Preacher Man, Goldfinger, I Only Wanna Be With You, To Sir With Love and, of course, Shout!.

These will be performed by Fiona Carty, Amy Penston, Jody Ennis, Emily J. Carroll, Kelly-Marie Ní Cheallaigh and Keila Ana Whelan in this touring production that’s being presented by Verdant Productions and Do R Die Productions.

In the show, the songs and each girl’s own unfolding story are tied together by hilarious sound-bytes from the period – from 1960s advertisements to lonely-heart letters. The letters are answered by Shout! magazine’s agony aunt, who thinks each girl’s problem can be solved with a “fetching new hair style and a new shade of lipstick”.

■ Shout – the Mod Musical is at the Town Hall Theatre, this Friday, June 1. Tickets €20 at tht.ie, 091-569777 or at the Box Office.