Posh -Review- Northern Stage

Posh by Laura Wade

Presented by Newcastle University Theatre Society 

Northern Stage 3

Age recommended 16+

Monday 27th November 2017  7.00pm

I found myself in a surreal life imitating art moment, wondering is this still part of the play, when I went  outside during the interval last night and hearing a group of very well spoken people of college age talk not so quietly about how they all must go to an event, it's ONLY a hundred pounds a ticket, you get taken somewhere ending up who knows where and one time there was even a live sex show. They then went on to say how hilarious the play was, that they were loving the Eton references and it was reminding them of Harry...

Posh, written by Laura Wade originally started as a play in 2010 and was made into a film called The Riot Club in 2014. It tells of an exclusive and secret all boys dining club (The Riot Club) from Oxford University. When the play first came out it was likened to real clubs including Bullingdon Club and High Trees Society which the writer denies saying it is a work of fiction only.

It is set in a hired for the night private dining area in Oxford where ten young boys are preparing for a night of ‘debauchery, decadence and bloody good wine. Legends will be made and reputations will be damaged’ 

As the club members arrive in turn we start to see the rules initiations and longstanding traditions of the club (no one can take their seat until all members and the leader arrives, nor can they leave the room at all for anything until the end of the night for example)  The conversation is full of ribbing of each other, pomp, joviality excitement of what the night has in store also the bond that the club brings to its members. There is lots of talk of sex and swearing (including the c word) all of which provided me and the audience with lots of laugh out loud moments. I was in the front row and so close to the actors that I had to make sure I kept my feet tucked away for fear I might trip one of them up but that added to feeling almost that I was part of their merriment as they took to singing jumping on seats and poetry reading in between courses. 

Of course mixed in with this was the continuing theme of sense of entitlement that The Riot Club members felt. The scenes where the  owner of the establishment and his daughter entered the room to bring food and drink. The sneaked in through the window female escort (or as they thought a paid person who was going to provide oral sex to all under the table) displayed that they thought that anything can be bought with enough money, not just things but people. That their continued and ensuing behaviour could be justified because they were paying for it all. Social and class differences and divides are obviously very prominent in this and whatever your own take is it definitely makes you think about the subject.

As the night continues there is fun and frivolity, food, drinks flow and money gets thrown around  (being in the front row I ended up with some of the drink on me which I didn’t mind but be prepared for that possibility if sitting in the front)  behaviour becomes more wild until things start taking a gradual darker tone and the atmosphere turns heated leading to a tragic event.

The play is set in the one room,  around the table, but the different characters, the humour (I'm vegetarian but still found the 10 bird scene hilarious) the gusto and energy displayed gives this production a great flow as well as being thought provoking. At times it was uncomfortable to watch, which I think is the intent, because of the subject matter and at certain parts I wanted to shout ‘stop, leave them alone’  which is a good thing... that it provoked that kind of reaction. With some of the scenes and conversations at times, I welcomed the casting of half female actors to play male parts which they did superbly.

The music throughout and in between was very well chosen and apt including Common People by Pulp, The Smiths Panic and Boys Will be Boys by The Ordinary Boys.

Being in a smaller more intimate studio I found it lent itself to making the audience feel very much part of the show and I thoroughly enjoyed it all. Very well done to all involved. Even the money looked real, I'd not seen that many £50 notes thrown around before.

Posh runs until 29th November

Cast members 

Bea Hammerton 

Max Fosh

Conor O'Hara

Xander Kynoch 

Chris Whyte 

Elie Beach 

Eleanor Beattie 

Fiona Percival 

Edie Martin 

Ally Cloke 

Ruaidhri Johnston 

Tara Worthington 

Review by Belinda Bekki-Winter