Actress ALICE FRANKHAM features in Theatre Royal Plymouth’s new production of Nick Stimson and Jimmy Jewell’s NHS The Musical (17-25 September 2021), inspired by first-hand accounts from NHS staff.
Paying tribute to the heroes who have been seeing us all through the pandemic, the combined company of seven cast and seven band members also includes Sabrina Aloueche, Jordan Castle, Peter Caulfield, Jimmy Johnston, Justina Kehinde and Neil Stewart. Stephen Fletcher directs.
NHS The Musical was first seen at The Drum Theatre, Theatre Royal, Plymouth in 2006 and was the product of four years of research and interviews conducted by Theatre Royal, Plymouth associate directors Stimson and Jewell.
Alice Frankham plays Jillian. Her theatre credits include One Man, Two Guvnors (Derby Theatre/The Queen’s Theatre, Hornchurch), Miss Julie (UK tour), Jesus Hopped The A Train (HOME), Sleeping Beauty (Theatre Royal Stratford East), Marriage Blanc (Asylum Chapel, London), Days of Wine and Roses (53Two, Manchester), Strindberg’s Women (Jermyn Street Theatre), Wuthering Heights The Musical (The Actors’ Church, Covent Garden), Jurassic Lark – The Musical (Leicester Square Theatre), The Pint (Waterloo East Theatre), Jack and the Beanstalk (Buxton Opera House), Fred and Georgie (Greenwich Theatre), NewsRevue (Canal Cafe Theatre), The Rivals (Panache Theatre), Vanessa and Virginia (Riverside Studios) and Pretty Ugly (Rose Theatre Kingston). Her television credits include Genius and The Royals; and for film, Borderline and Love Me Do.
Here Alice continues Musical Theatre Review’s interview series: Five Questions With…
How has it felt to be in rehearsal for an actual live stage production after such a tough time for theatre?
It’s a huge relief to be working again, I feel extremely lucky. When we did our first run through, I had a real ‘goosebumps’ moment because, as cheesy as it sounds, I felt like I’d come home.
How did you become involved with NHS The Musical, can you tell us more about your role and the format the show takes?
I auditioned back in July and after what I thought was a pretty disastrous recall (!) I was offered the part. Interestingly, it was my first ‘in person’ audition since March 2020 and my nerves were off the scale. I think I must have forgotten the mechanisms I use to control my nerves because it had been so long since I’d needed them. I personally prefer real life auditions to online – I think there’s an energy that gets lost when meeting via a screen (but that’s also because I’m a massive technophobe!).
The cast of NHS The Musical in rehearsal. Picture: Steve Tanner
I play Jillian in the show who is ‘the perfectly well looking one’ (so no pressure there). She’s a very sunny, optimistic person. She’s a yoga teacher, eats very healthily and seems to have the perfect life. Jillian, along with Robert and Arthur are all patients with various medical complaints – we follow their journeys through the NHS from diagnosis to treatment through to recovery. We meet doctors, nurses, porters, politicians, pharmaceutical suppliers, consultants, NHS managers and the founder of the NHS himself along the way. It’s as if the three patients have fallen down the rabbit hole and instead of Wonderland, they have landed in the all-singing, all-dancing, glitzy, brash and frenetic world of NHS The Musical.
The musical has been informed by first-hand accounts, some of which must be difficult to hear. How does the show balance the comedy and tragedy of what the NHS has been through?
It was made clear to us early on that the show is not ‘Covid The Musical’ and that although it acknowledges the last year and a half, its main focus is the NHS in general and its history. Something I think the show does really well, and that is true to life (particularly life in a hospital) is the cruel juxtaposition of tragedy with everyday goings on. People’s worlds fall apart on a daily basis but life goes on and the hospital beds need to be filled again by the next patient. The show finds comedy in the darkest of places, which I think is very British.
How did life treat you during lockdown, did you have to look for alternative employment to performing for a while?
I was very lucky during lockdown, I live with my husband so we were able to look after each other, watch lots of films that had been on our list forever, do a big wardrobe clear out, make banana bread (then leave the banana bread to go mouldy because we realised we didn’t like banana bread) etc etc. I also fell in love with reading again – and planted some window boxes too, which were an absolute joy. Who knew that a few petunias could become as precious as a pet?!
I did find alternative work during the second lockdown, working in a lovely local primary school as a 1:1. It was nice to have a routine and somewhere to be every day. I’m already familiar with working in schools though– it has been one of my MANY ‘resting’ jobs over the years.
Your list of credits is impressive, I know it’s an impossible question but has there been a particular highlight that stands out from your career so far?
I’ve been working on and off for a decade and won’t pretend it’s been easy but I have been lucky in recent times (pre Covid) to play some fab roles – most recently ‘Rachel Crabbe’ in One Man Two, Guvnors at Derby Theatre and Queen’s Theatre Hornchurch. It was an absolute blast and so gratifying to hear the audiences howling with laughter. And I got to live my best ‘Marlene Dietrich‘ life and wear a suit and tie for the whole show. Very fun indeed.
- NHS The Musical runs at Theatre Royal Plymouth from 17-25 September 2021
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