Most of us know and love the whip-crackin’, brown-leather-pants-wearing character of Calamity Jane from her appearance in the 1953 movie musical of the same name starring Doris Day. This version of her sings like a Disney princess and has perfectly coiffed blonde hair, which is somewhat unrealistic for a woman who dressed in soldier’s uniforms in the 1880s, took responsibility for her six younger siblings, and could outshoot, outdrink and outswear any other man in her hometown of Deadwood, USA.
Beloved Australian actor Virginia Gay’s interpretation of the famous Calamity irreverently, lovingly muddies up the too-perfect-movie-musical-version in a brand-new production that is positively stuffed with theatrical treats, now showing at the Opera House. It’s grimy, it’s silly, and the fourth wall is nowhere to be found. It’s also the biggest production since the original staging of this idea, which debuted in 2017 as part of the Neglected Musicals program at Hayes Theatre Co transforming Sydney Opera House’s studio theatre into a grand version of Deadwood’s Golden Garter saloon and theatre.
The premise of Calamity Jane is this: Calamity is an unruly local of small-town Deadwood who rides with “Wild” Bill Hickok, and has a hopeless crush on second lieutenant Danny Gilmartin (despite her otherwise masculine appearance, Calamity is still very much a little emotional girl at heart). When the local theatre owner fails to secure a beautiful actress from New York, Calamity vows to bring the famous songstress Adelaide Adams to the Golden Garter. Off she goes to the Windy City of Chicago, and accidentally brings back an imposter. An incredibly queer-coded “they were roommates” situation ensues, and a few songs later, a triple wedding comes along.
This interpretation of the stage play and Warner Brothers film is adapted by Ronald Hanmer and Phil Park. Richard Carroll, who was involved in the original presentation, directs this larger-than-life version with an excitement that bursts from each performer, instrument and set piece. Design by Lauren Peters recreates the Golden Garter with just the right amount of glitz, blending the browns of the film with the golds, sequins and feathers that belong in a musical. The world that Carroll and Peters create is the perfect platform for the performers to play on, and evidently play is what they do best.
Alongside Gay stars a round up of seven performers, plus one lucky front-row audience member. Victoria Falconer, co-artistic director of Hayes Theatre Co, is a veritable highlight as the singing, dancing, multi-instrumentalist saloon-girl Susan (and as the real Adelaide Adams). Kaya Byrne plays Lieutenant Gilmartin, and Andrew Cutcliffe the gun-slinging Wild Bill. Both are earnest and lovable as Calamity’s comrades and love interests. Kala Gare (who stars in My Brilliant Career, coming to STC in 2026) as Katie Brown has a number of shining moments, most notably the incredibly queer interpretation of ‘A Woman’s Touch’. Phillip Lowe as the theatre proprietor and Ryan Gonzalez as Francis Fryer are also delightful, with Gonzalez playing a really useful feminine foil to the masculine Calamity that suggests she wasn’t the only one operating outside the norm in her time.
Carroll and Gay’s Calamity Jane doesn’t just break the fourth wall, it drags you into the fold of the Deadwood community. This makes for some great celebrations of Calamity’s determinedness to be herself despite everything around her, and practically forces us to consider how we can bring a bit of Calamity to our own lives. There’s even a tiny acknowledgement of the difficulties that come with romanticising “The Wild West”, as a place that was stolen from the people who inhabited it well before cowboys were even a thought.
It’s more than an escape from the rest of the world, it’s a joyful recreation of what we can find in ourselves and our communities if we can be open to difference and resistance to rigid norms.
This version of Calamity Jane is full of well-earned heart, as well as brilliantly orchestrated pantomime-esque delights. You’ll find yourself yelling from the saloon seats and smiling all the way up to your ears. Go for the cowboys, the fabulous performers, the beautiful close harmonies and banjos in the country ballad ‘Black Hills of Dakota’ – and stay long after the post-wedding sing-along has ended. Take your mum, your best friend, the love of your life – hell, you can even take a stranger you found in the Windy City. Just don’t forget your boots, partner.
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