A COLLABORATION between Pentabus and New Perspectives, two rural-touring theatre companies currently celebrating their 50th anniversaries, Make Good is a musical that illuminates a notorious corporate injustice.

The Post Office’s wrongful prosecution of 900 subpostmasters, based on flawed data from Fujitsu’s Horizon system, entered public consciousness through the award-winning TV series, Mr Bates vs The Post Office.

Make Good — in development long before the screening of the ITV drama in January — isn’t just a reworking of the same narrative with a few songs thrown in. There’s a comparable concern with the damage done to individuals, families and communities, but the similarity ends there. 

Rather than highlighting the craven deceptions of the organisation they trusted, Make Good celebrates the postmasters’ relish for their job and their resilience in the face of this serious abuse of institutional power.

Vicky Brazier, who plays subpostmaster Elsie and multiple other roles, tells me: “It’s about getting to the heart of what people went through. We use lighthearted songs, dance and a few showstopping numbers — not to provide psychological relief from the immense miscarriage of justice but to show what the job meant to the subpostmasters before it all went so terribly wrong.

“We can’t cover the same level of detail as the podcasts, but our writers [Jeanie O’Hare and Jim Fortune] have captured the essence of how the Horizon system rolled over these people. And they have imagined the pressure people were under to open the next day with balances they knew to be wrong.

“Make Good shows the absolute tragedy of them losing homes, marriages, liberty and lives, but there are moments of hope too.

“The TV drama proved that culture matters. It’s not just about entertainment and fun, it can move people and make them think differently about an issue. We are continuing that work.”

Angharad Jones, New Perspectives’ artistic director, explains the touring strategy for Make Good: “We are performing at 26 touring venues, many of them village halls,” she says. 

The production provides access to musical theatre for communities like the ones reflected in the drama and widens participation by using community choirs in each of the locations in which it is performed.  

The selection of venues is important. After decades of funding cuts and the closure of arts venues, a project like this provides a much-needed cultural lifeline for small communities.

On the Nottingham leg of the tour vocal accompaniment is provided by the socialist Clarion Choir, established in 1988 and part of the Campaigning Choirs Network. In this production, the choir has a dual role, commenting on the action in the manner of a traditional Greek chorus, but also becoming part of the action by singing words of encouragement to the characters in their darker moments. 

Bronwyn Westacott, Clarion Choir’s musical director, outlines the challenges posed by Make Good: “We’re doing three songs in two-part harmony. It’s harder to sing sitting down, and harder to get our timing right from our seats in the audience, but we’ll be taking our cue from The Postman.”

“Postman,” a figure portrayed by actor Ed Gaughan, isn’t making onstage deliveries in the choir’s rehearsal space in Sherwood Methodist Church, so the choir is cued by Westacott’s foot taps and a guide track of dialogue from the show. 

The need to cope with last-minute adjustments to the script has been an additional complication, but in this final rehearsal it sounds crisp and melodic from the outset. Nevertheless, there are painstaking retakes until everyone is happy. 

A particular phrase, sung many times in the rehearsal, epitomises the show’s spirit of defiant optimism: “You’re not the only one, you never were the only one…”

On tour until December 1. For more information see: pentabus.co.uk.