Squad Goals at the Dagenham and Redbridge Football Ground to close on the 26th September

Squad Goals, the new musical which is playing at the Dagenham and Redbridge Football Ground, will finish performances on the 26th September. The show was due to run until the 10th October. The sho received a 4-Star rating from our very own reviewer. 

Caspa productions, the producers of the show released the following statement:

"It is with huge regret that we have taken the decision to end the current run of Squad Goals after the evening performance on Saturday 26th Sept.

This is a really tough decision. We overcame so many hurdles to put on Covid-safe performances and we are so proud of our team for all they’ve done to make this happen. But the increasing threat of further restrictions is putting the production at risk. 

We have to be able to protect everyone’s safety, but we’re also working with limited resources. The pandemic has already had an adverse impact on the production and the possibility of a national or local lockdown has created further uncertainty. 

We hope to welcome as many people as possible to the show this week. We are inviting ticketholders booked later in the run to switch to an earlier performance, or alternatively receive a full refund. For those who have not yet booked tickets, there are still some places available but hurry!"

REVIEW: Squad Goals at Dagenham and Redbridge Football Ground

Any chance right now for escapism is welcomed and especially if it’s returning to live theatre. Amazing then that Squad Goals should absolutely smash a premier league-level triumph by taking over a stadium no-less for arguably one of the UK’s most exciting live theatre events of 2020. 

Squad Goals revolves around a group of young women who are about to embark on the expected routes their parents anticipated for them. At the eleventh hour before these ‘realistic careers’ are almost reality, the women have the chance to play one crucial last game at a community tournament that is guaranteed to be visited by a scout for Dagenham and Redbridge FC. 

Arriving at the venue, it’s impossible to not be instantly absorbed into the immersive buzz of the football club with its bustling club house bar, stewards checking us in and cast in football kit wandering through the space adding to the sense of pre-match anticipation. 

 

The players themselves are such a three-dimensional ensemble of characters from the social-media Instagram influencer to the goal-driven ambitious football devotees. Where the production really shines is in these finely-tuned and recognisable ‘types’. It’s very easy to spot someone you recognise and impossible not to sense a fear of missing out when the players split off on their various paths with the fragmenting audience each enjoying backstory that fleshes out our understanding of some of the individuals and their motivations.