First Course (1980)

World Premiere: 8 July 1980
Venue: Stephen Joseph Theatre In The Round, Scarborough

Description: Revue
Composer: Paul Todd

Published / Available to Stage: No

History

First Course is Alan Ayckbourn's second musical revue with the composer Paul Todd and preceded their first full-length collaboration in the same year, Suburban Strains. The revue was written as a lunchtime entertainment which was performed alternately with a second, unrelated lunchtime revue Second Helping at the Stephen Joseph Theatre In The Round during the summer of 1980 in the venue's Studio Theatre.

There is no plot to the piece, presenting as it does a perspective of 10 decades through 10 songs as seen through the eyes of the writer and composer. The revue has never been published, but is available for production.

Synopsis / Songs

First Course is a tour through the decades from 1890 to 1980 with each song linked by a short sketch; it is not a parody rather more individual and biased perspectives of each decade. The decades are broken down into:

"Sort Of" deals with the coyness of young love.
"Mists of Love" is deliberate parody - a young man sings of his love for his "dark, gypsy maiden".
"Heroes" - the youthful enthusiasm of a soldier, a sailor and an airman, the glory of the fight, and the "glamour" of joining the Forces take on an acid taste as the reality of war and death loom closer.
"Tea-Tango" – two liberated females declare their new emancipated philosophy.
"Drinking at Charlie's" - a barman's-eye view of the pre-war years.
"Air-Raids" - a song from the friendly local air-raid warden.
"Fifties Rock" - a summing-up of the early years of rock 'n' roll.
"Times were swinging" - mini-skirts, love and peace, Liverpool, flowers in the hair - the swinging sixties.
"A Song for Europe" - an original Eurovision song which takes a sideways look at that part of the music business.
"Hey 1980" - where will the eighties take us?

Premiere Production Details (1980)

World premiere: 8 July 1980
Final performance: 2 September 1980
Venue: Stephen Joseph Theatre In The Round, Scarborough
Staging: End-stage

Director: Alan Ayckbourn
Musical Director: Paul Todd
Piano: Paul Todd

Company
Lavinia Bertram
Jeffrey Robert
Michael Simkins
Marcia Warren

Stage Manager: Amanda Saunders

First Course (1980)

History

Synopsis / Songs

Premiere Production Details (1980)

Further Reading