Patron Maureen Nolan stars in Footloose, writes FLICKY HARRISON

SINGER/ACTRESS Maureen Nolan will be anything but footloose and fancy free when 90 members and friends of Everybody Sing Music School from Swindon visit her in Oxford.

Everybody Sing, based in the Belmont Studios in Old Town, will be heading down the A420, to see their patron in action in Footloose: The Musical.

The actress, who came to fame as one of the Nolan Sisters, regularly comes to Swindon to mentor singers in various workshops.

“I will see them when Kerry brings all 90 of them to the show. They are all friends now, I see them so often,’’ said Maureen.

The singer is playing the part of Vi Moore, the mother of the rebellious teenager and wife of the Reverend Moore who bans rock ‘n’ roll music and dancing.

She says that she plays the peacemaker between her daughter and the Reverend, who are at logger heads in the musical.

The stage show of Footloose follows the same basic story as the 1984 film starring Kevin Bacon, and Maureen feels it is made for theatre.

“Many people don’t realise that all that wonderful award-winning music such as Holding Out For A Hero and Let’s Hear It For The Boy was written for the film,’’ said Maureen.

“I sing a beautiful song that wasn’t in the film called Can You Find It In Your Heart.’’ Maureen is no stranger to Footloose having performed in a previous production. She says the main difference in this show is all the cast are musicians and actors, so everything is live. It’s astonishing to watch and with our talented cast we can’t fail,’’ she said.

Before coming to Oxford’s New Theatre, Maureen has been working with Gareth Gates playing the part of Willard, but now she has to get used to the new kid on the block, Lee Brennan, from pop trio 911, who is taking the part.

The boy band were one of the biggest pop acts in the 1990s and had 10 consecutive top ten singles in that decade. But as Maureen is well aware, stepping from a pop star career to musical theatre can be a daunting move.

“Gareth was a revelation to me. He was so good at comedy,’’ said Maureen. “I met lovely young Lee when he came for audition and I am sure he is going to be just as amazing.’’

The cast need to be fit in Footloose as it scurries along at a fast pace with a lot of huge song and dance numbers. But it is not only in Footloose that this Nolan sister is in the mood for dancing - in the comedy play The Naked Truth she had to learn pole dancing.

“It is really hard work. I know it is regarded as a sexy thing to do but I have such admiration for those dancers. It is a sport. Luckily for me I only had to do a little bit,’’ she said. Before taking the part in Footloose, Maureen was reprising her role as Mrs Johnstone in Blood Brothers. She was the fourth Nolan sister to take the part in the West End, earning a place in the Guinness Book of Records.

Unlike her character Mrs Johnstone, Maureen does not believe in ritual or superstitions, although she is aware that many of her fellow thespians are.

“It is the nature of theatre but it was very strange for me taking on the role of a woman who was so superstitious when I am not,’’ she said. At the moment her recording career is on hold because she is enjoying her acting so much and she is hoping to ‘kick off her Sunday shoes to cut loose’ into the world of television as her next project.

Footloose runs from April 18 to 23 at Oxford’s New Theatre in Broad Street. 0844 871 3020.

<li> May 1: A Cinderella panto workshop with Maureen Nolan and Sophie Haynes runs from 10am to 1pm, for youngsters aged four to 11. The cost is £12. There is also a Footloose The Musical workshop with Maureen Nolan and Sophie Haynes, from 2pm to 7pm. This is for teenagers and adults and costs £21. No performance experience is necessary.