WHEN Michele Turner plays Calamity Jane next month for Guiseley Amateurs, the show's Producer will have these words of advice: Don't shoot yourself in the legs like I did.' It's 20 years since Judith Morris played Calamity Jane but she lived up to the name at the dress rehearsal when she cocked the six-shooters whilst they were in the holsters and then fired them into her legs from close range.
The guns were firing blanks, but there was enough gunpowder in the charges to blast through her buckskin trousers and burn her legs.
"It was like a firework going off. It was very painful and my legs were very tender for opening night but we went ahead with the show," she said.
Judith, of Shipley is producing for Guiseley Amateur Operatic Society for the first time. But it's not the first time she has defied the pain barrier to perform.
A broken foot meant she once played the lead role in Hello Dolly' clad in a plaster cast and she's also produced South Pacific' despite a broken ankle.
"They say things come in threes and I've had mine so I hope nothing unfortunate befalls Michele," said Judith.
Leading lady Michele, of Pudsey, intends to heed the advice.
"There's no way I'll be cocking the guns in the holster in the wings before I go on. Judith learned a painful lesson, I guess, and she's passed some sound advice onto me," she said.
Calamity Jane' is to be staged at Guiseley Theatre from Monday, February 26 to Saturday, March 3. A matinee performance takes place on the Saturday.
Tickets priced between £7.50 and £10 are available on 0113 2503341.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article