I have met the enemy (and the enemy is us) - Review - Byker Community Centre

I have met the enemy (and the enemy is us)

Byker Community Centre
17th Oct 2019

A Common Wealth/Northern Stage production

Staged in the upper room of Byker Community Centre, this is a theatre experience with a difference. There is no stage, and no seats, we are invited to move around the space, interact with the actors and each other, but not to touch anything -unless specifically asked to do so... I enter the room, soft music is playing and there are structures with lights dotted around. "Hello, I'm Alex, how are you? Have you been to an arms fair before?" Within minutes I have been greeted by four people, and given advice on personal security by two of them, invited to look around, sample the refreshments and enjoy... Audience participation is not my thing - unless you count booing at the baddie in Panto, but I go with the flow as best I can. I hope I won't be called on to do more than make small talk.

This is not going to be your average theatre show.

In the prologue of the Arms Fair, we are introduced to the latest technological killing machines by a series of salesmen with slick sales patter where names such BAE and Rolls Royce are dropped into the conversation. And then the narrative moves to the more personal stories - of Alex, a British soldier, veteran of the Afghan conflict, Mo'min, a Palestinian from the West Bank, an actor, now living in London, and Shatha, an artist in Yemen, who appears via a pre-recorded video. They tell of their own experiences of war, of air strikes, of guns and bombs. Each one told from a different perspective, each one very personal. Each one painful. And each one the direct result of British arms deals.

Their stories are enhanced ad illustrated with the strange ticking light box props. These it transpires are metronomes. There are seventy two of them, representing the seventy two Eurofighter jets sold to Saudi Arabia and used in Yemen. The ticking of the metronomes echoes the Domesday Clock, ticking down to the destruction of mankind.

I Have Met The Enemy is hard -hitting, political theatre. It does not pull punches. But it is also compassionate and human, even as it highlights the inhumanity of the arms trade. These are real people, and their experiences are real. Their losses are real. Their fears are real. Their stories draw you in, you are delighted by the thought of Alex's mother walking her dog in Wales, of Mo'min out with the sheep and the horse, and of Shatha dancing at a wedding. But, they pull no punches - just as you settle into the stories, a gun is levelled, or a grenade is thrown, or an airstrike hits. Blood mixes with jasmine flowers.

It raises so many issues, asks so many questions, and leaves us uncomfortable, thinking about the consequences of war, and our part in it.

You can meet the enemy at Byker Community Centre until Saturday 26th Oct.

Denise Sparrowhawk

The Dark Earth and the Light Sky - Review - People's Theatre

The Dark Earth and the Light Sky

People's theatre
11th June 2019

Written by Nick Dear
Directed by Hugh Keegan


The Dark Earth and the Light Sky is the story of the friendship between poets Robert Frost and Edward Thomas.  There are four main characters - Edward Thomas, Helen Thomas, Robert Frost and Eleanor Farjeon and the play follows the relationships between these four friends. Though the play is ostensibly about the friendship between Frost and Thomas and the influence they each had on the other's career, for me, the relationship between Helen and Edward seems the strongest thread and Helen's voice the strongest, throughout.

Each character addresses the audience at some point - the first we hear is Helen and her voice throughout is the strongest. Even as she is moved away from Edward's focus she remains steadfast and forthright. Anna Dobson plays the role beautifully - capturing the transition from the joy of the young lover, through the drudgery of motherhood and housekeeping, essentially bringing up the children and running the household alone as Edward pursues his own dreams. Her devotion to Edward shines through even as he pushes her away.

Edward Thomas (Sam Hinton)  is an unhappy man - he doesn't fit comfortably into the world - at odds with his father, labelled failure by him because he does not share his hunger for financial success. Thomas wants to enjoy life as he lives it, not spend life striving in a job he hates in order to get on in society. His affinity is with words and with the land and the countryside. City life stifles him. He makes his living - such as it is writing literary criticisms, biographies, essays, reviews but it takes the friendship with Frost for him to realise he himself could be a poet. And yet still he feels that something is missing. Ironically, having fought against the constraints of city life, and the daily grind of marriage and children, he finally finds purpose by joining the army. And therein he finally breaks Helen's heart.

Robert Frost (Mark Burden) is a more enigmatic character - though he is one of the main characters in the drama I feel  we learn very little the man himself - other than his love for words, and his affection for Thomas, other than this we are given only glimpses into his own private life, snatches of his family history and background.

Finally, we have Eleanor Farjeon (Alison Carr), hopelessly in love with Edward but never more than friends. Their relationship brings light into Edwards life and darkness to Helen’s – she befriends Eleanor to keep an enemy close, and though the two women are friends, Helen is aware perhaps even before Eleanor herself, of the other woman’s love for her husband.  Eleanor is light, apparently carefree, and becomes the confident of Edward and Frost.  Hers is a lonely life, despite her place in society. Both she and Frost feel the loss of Edward keenly.

There are many, many layers to this play – it explores intellect and intelligence, but also emotion, and the nature of love, and expectation, success and failure, and self-worth. It is threaded through with images of nature and the love of the natural world, and the love of words. But also the power of words, both those spoken, and those not, their power to enlighten, and to educate but to also to confuse, to crush and to undermine.  The themes of language and nature are embodied in the stunning set created by Rolf Wojciechowski – with its draped images of distant hills and trees, and skies filled with cloudlike words – some legible and some just a hint of language.

The Dark Earth and the Light Sky is a beautifully sad play. A story of love, and loss. The cast portray their characters with such empathy throughout. Lovely performances from everyone involved. Performed in the round, this is an absorbing and intimate experience. As the audience, we switch from being voyeurs of these people's lives to being included in them, and back again.  

Studio productions never disappoint at the People's Theatre. This one takes them to another level.

Denise Sparrowhawk

Noughts and Crosses - Review - Northern Stage

Noughts and Crosses

Northern Stage
7th May 2019

Arriving at the Northern Stage was a shock: the place was heaving with teenagers. I have never seen so many young people at a theatre production. Aha! of course, Malorie Blackman!

Noughts and Crosses is based on the book series of the same name by award-winning Young Adult writer, Malorie Blackman, who as Children’s Laureate initiated the Young Adult Literary Convention, which takes place at London ComiCon. She saw a way of bringing books to where her young audience was already. More recently, she wrote the Doctor Who episode concerning Rosa Parks. You may begin to detect a theme here. What Malorie Blackman excels at is taking highly political themes, of oppression and resistance, racism and direct action, and examining them through the lens of young lovers and fighters, in a speculative world that resembles but whose difference sheds light on our own.

Noughts and Crosses is set in a world divided between the privileged (black) Crosses and the exploited (white) Noughts, who are derogatorily referred to a ‘Blankers’, a term which has the same hateful power as the N-word in our world. It features two young people, Sephy and Callum, who fall in love across this divide. So, as my friend put it, just Romeo and Juliet then? In a sense, yes. But its dilemmas seem very modern, with echoes not just of Apartheid South Africa and the US Civil rights Movement, but also of the Troubles in Northern Ireland, whose spectre has been re-raised by the murder of Lyra McKee by the New IRA.

The young lovers are: Sephy (Persephone), daughter of the Cross Home Secretary, Kamal and alcoholic mother, Jasmine; and Callum McGregor, the Nought son of their sacked servant, Maggie. Sephy and Callum are childhood friends who, as they grow, are forced to keep their friendship secret. Under external political pressure, Kamal is forced to begin desegregation, allowing the first Nought pupils into previously exclusively Cross schools. Callum is one of the first of this experimental intake.
The violent reaction of the Crosses to this is reminiscent of the racist violence against the US Civil Rights Movement. Sephy is ostracised and later assaulted by her Cross friends, for attempting to bridge this violent divide. Callum is forced to publicly deny his friendship with Sephy, a betrayal he attempts to justify by saying it was for her own protection.

As the political tension increases, Callum’s brother Jude and his father Ryan are drawn to the Resistance Militia. Callum and his mother Meggie maintain that resistance must be non-violent. The divide is not just between communities but is causing a rift within families. We learn that Callum’s sister has been the victim of violence from within their Nought community for having a Cross boyfriend, and the internal conflict has driven her mad. She refuses to leave her room and labours under the delusion that she is not a Nought but a Cross.
When the Resistance Militia set a bomb in a crowded shopping centre, Jude and Ryan are forced to flee in the ensuing anti-terrorist crackdown. Ryan is caught but, refuses to betray his son’s whereabouts. He is prepared to die for the cause. He is tried and sentenced.

Sephy finds the whole situation unbearable and resolves to escape: either to boarding school or to run away with Callum, who she asks, in a smuggled letter, to meet her.
Thus ends Act One.

Act Two opens, three years later.
Sephy is back from boarding school; Callum is on a brief visit home from the Militia which he has joined following his father’s death. It is only now that he receives Sephy’s letter. They meet, but in a shocking twist Sephy is taken hostage.
Callum is left alone to guard Sephy, while the others go to pick up the ransom. She angrily confronts him and they are reconciled.

The kidnappers are betrayed and the plot darkens further; options are offered and choices made leading to a horrifying finale.  However thehearbreaking final scene offers a slither of hope for the future, in an echo of the opening scene.

The play packs a huge amount of action into its two hours. It felt Shakespearean in its weight and complexity, but also startlingly modern. The staging, set design, video, sound and lighting design, all added heft and drama to the powerfully adapted script by Sabrina Mahfouz. Stark black and rusty red walls, minimalist set, banks of tv screens, the discordant soundscape created a pressing sense of drama. The surreal slo-mo physicality of the fight and bombing scenes used the minimal props to extreme effect. The massive steps up to the gallows and the eerily lit noose, dwarfing the onlookers, added dramatic tension and shocking power to the climax of each act.
I was weeping at the final scene and praying for a reprieve. But this is a modern Romeo and Juliet.

My only quibble: in compressing such a vast story, summarising the 3-year gap when Sephy is at boarding school and Callum in the Militia, felt a bit feeble, and the device of the undelivered letter strained credulity – but I’m not sure how you would do it otherwise.
Malorie Blackman is quoted as saying that she is sorry that the themes are still as relevant as when she wrote the book 20 years ago. Which is sadly true on a societal level, but as drama it gives added grip. And that teens could still be talking animatedly and identifying so intensely with a book written before they were born, is a tribute to both Malorie Blackman and the production team, from the writer, director, designers and cast, who played their roles flawlessly.

It sent me back wanting to read the whole series from the start to the latest book, Crossfire, due out this summer.

Gerry Byrne

Wonderland - Review - Northern Stage

Wonderland 

Northern Stage 
27th Feb 2019


Wonderland. That's a word to conjure with, isn't it? It's full of allusions and connotations and promise! Alice in Wonderland immediately springs to mind - in her strange and wonderful world down the rabbit hole, where everything is not always good and creatures talk in confusing half truths and riddles, ad who don't always have Alice's best interests at heart. Wonderland: it's aspirational, the stuff of dreams - who wouldn't want to go to there?

Set in the eighties, during the miner's strike,

Beth Steel's Wonderland is the land of miners, of  pits shafts and cages, heat and hard graft. This land is equally wonderful, and dangerous and riddled with double speaking creatures who all have something they want from Wonderland and it is not always the same thing.

Wonderland follows the fortunes of a group of Nottinghamshire miners. From the first

day dfor a couple of 17 year old rookies to the last days of the strike and the return to work. Beth Steel is a miner's daughter. I was expecting a piece that was sympathetic to the mining community, and was fully prepared for the usual polarised opinions that the miner's strike inevitably draws out. I grew up I a pit town in the Durham coalfield. Family members and friends worked in the industry - not all down the pit and not all with the same view of the strike. Miners had a strong work ethic. They were tough men doing a tough job and they were proud of it. They were also loyal - to the men they worked with and to the pit. The pit was their livelihood and they respected it. The strike took that away from them, completely and utterly. It's hardly surprising that they remain bitter in the face of what they see as a betrayal. 

What Beth Steel's Wonderland shows is the power of the mining communities pitted against the political powers and their machinations. Her portrayal is a balanced view - yes the sympathy for the miners is there but she does not shirk away from

showing all sides of the story. Not all the politicians agreed with the plan, but they were in the end self-serving - they followed the party line to preserve themselves. Those that insisted on voicing a contrary opinion were silenced, or cut out. I actually began to feel a certain sympathy for Ian MacGregor - seen as the hatchet man, he was brought in believing he was going to transform the industry and make it profitable, and he became the scapegoat. I think he was shafted almost as much as the miners. 
Equally, not all the miners support the strike - but once the wheels are in motion it's impossible stop the machine from rolling. Entitled to a vote, but given none, the strike was effectively illegal but loyalty to the union and to fellow mineworkers is the watchword and you did not dissent. You are either with, or against. No middle ground. 


All this sounds very heavy, and political and serious but this is a superbly entertain

ing, funny and emotional play. I love the incongruity of  singing and dancing miners and the humour - from the subtlest jokes to the ribald banter between the men. Act one is full of energy, laughter, music.. Act two is darker - the music has died away and the humour is blacker than the coalface. 

Wonderland is a bold, beautiful piece of theatre. It starts with a lone  miner scraping the title in coal on the grubby shutter. WONDERLAND. It's not exactly sparkling neon. The shutter curtain rolls up with industrial clatter and grinding , a sudden flash bang lights the stage for a second and we see scaffolding, rusty, and rail tracks...and the coalface, black, glistening, immense. Just for that instant there is a hint of wonder - what world is this? It ends on the forlorn, heartrending reprieve - "I am the son, of the son, of the son of collier's son". 

It is an outstanding production. Everyone who thinks they know what the miners strike was about needs to see this play. It's about the people and the politics, and the breaking of a country and it is about life and loyalty and dignity. 

Wonderland runs until 9th March.

*Photo credit Darren Bell  

Denise Sparrowhawk

Trump The Musical - Review - Alphabetti Theatre

Trump The Musical 
Alphabetti Theatre 
26th February 2019

The first thing I saw when I arrived in the venue was a Make America great again AGAIN hat. I had to look twice at the hat to realise this was also satire, just when I thought I might have made a mistake and come to a trump rally by accident. The guys wasted no time in getting the show on the road with a sickeningly America pride song, about as over the top as America fuck yeah from the team America soundtrack.

The 4 performers and musician (and occasional performer) were all well polished, with a straight out of drama school like feel to their performance. Trump, Kim Jong Ill and Putin are all played by women to quite a high and recognisable level. It’s hard to do a satire of Trump without approaching stereotypes and boy were there stereotypes, Trump comes off lightly compared to ‘King’ Nigel Farage who is just about the antipathy of Brexit racism. Putin’s Russian accent and the general American accents are pretty much superb, Kim Jong Ill needs a bit of work however and was less North Korean more Scandinavian, but was a great caricature all the same. Pretty much all the characters are caricatures. If you are looking for subtlety and well rounded, fair and balanced characters you have come to the wrong place. However if you want cutting satire, this is it!

At one point Trump simulates taking a dump and there is rather uncomfortable bondage scene and attire. This production is simply a laughfest from start to finish. The songs are well thought out, the narrative is obviously always changing, as are some of the jokes, of which there are many are based on recent news stories. It must be hard writing a show you will tour knowing by the time you have finished it, it will already be largely out of date. They get around this brilliantly by setting it a year in the future (2020), in which king Nigel Farage rules over England (he’s lost the other three countries in the UK. The plot is farce, but what wee you expecting?

Sometimes even the truth is harder to believe, so in a way it’s the gift that keeps on giving. I recommend you check it out yourself if you are lucky enough to snap up a ticket for this run. I believe they are also playing Edinburgh this year along with their Boris Johnson musical, who makes a brief appearance in this play.

Be reassured even if you don’t like musicals you will thoroughly enjoy this must-see production.

Frank Cromartie Murphy

Start Swimming - People's Theatre - Review

Start Swimming 

People's Theatre

February 22nd 2019

Start Swimming is the second production to be staged in the brand-new People's Theatre Studio, and the first for the youth theatre. Given the title you could think it was about swimming - but no it wasn't.

Written by James Fritz and performed brilliantly by members of the People's Youth Theatre this is a great show from start to finish.

We start with some inspirational quotes from lots of different famous people including the phrase about insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different outcome, Albert Einstein.

Then we get onto the action. Now as someone who is an activist in politics this show is right down my alley.

I’M NOT GOING ANYWHERE.... this is the tag line and as an activist this is something I live by.

You know those "Keep Off the Grass" signs that you just want to kick over and walk on the grass? This idea is central to the play. 

The cast navigate a dystopian reality TV show in which they question each other; half have sashes and are the ones in 'power' and then some are without and have no authority. 

In politics especially in local levels they seem to think they really do have power! They don't! They are in authority but don't have power.

But who does have power? Is it landowners and leaders or is it people? You can make a case for all three but for me it's people. We as the people should be able to shape destiny, but who is right?

We could create a better society if we question things. But as we are human we accept second best and wait for someone else to act until we get pissed off and frustrated. Then we tell authority to Feck off.

Generation Y (as I am) are the best ones at telling authorities to do one, since we are the ones with better ideas and we understand that we NEED to be the change (something that the Millennials need to learn). You have to actually do something to get what you want.

Young people can make a difference.

But back to the play - the main person in the play has a blue sash and was not on either side of the divide but controlled both. 

The play spoke about how the world is broken and how we need to fix it.

While short in length – just over an hour – this is a great play that really connects to people and today's politics and the change that needs to happen! It’s a  great start in the  studio with some great young actors. The acapella singing is on point and in tune with the theme of the play.

On until Sat 23^rd. be quick to see it!

Reuben Hiles

Preview - Wonderland - Northern Stage

Wonderland comes to Northern Stage 

I'm pleased to see yet another gritty and honest play about mining communities coming to the North East. DS

Following rave reviews from critics and audiences Nottingham Playhouse revealed that Wonderland would be returning to the theatre to kick off its 2019 season, prior to a run at Northern Stage in Newcastle.

Set in 1983 Nottinghamshire, Wonderland sees two 16-year-olds, Malcom (played by John Booker) and Jimmy (played by Joshua Glenister) wait nervously at the pithead. Guided by veteran miner Colonel (played by William Travis), they descend into the brotherhood, banter, searing heat and liquid blue light of Welbeck Colliery.

Meanwhile in London, an American CEO Ian MacGregor (played by Robin Bowerman) is brought in to reform King Coal. Pits close and a strike is called.

Taking the stage as The Times reporter David Hart will be Giles Taylor, while Geff Francis will play pit manager Tilsley and transport secretary Nicholas Ridley. Holding roles as pitmen in the story will be Karl Haynes as Bobbo, and Jack Quarton as Fanny.

Nicholas Shaw and Paul Kemp have been confirmed to play pitman Spud and real-life politician Peter Walker in the Nottinghamshire-based show, respectively.

Directed by Nottingham-born Adam Penford and written by the daughter of Nottingham miner Beth Steel, the local story proved a huge hit with East Midlands audiences and returns to the award-nominated theatre for the second year running. 
Morgan Large’s ambitious coal-face set design also received critical acclaim, winning Best Design in the UK Theatre Awards 2018. 

Adam said: ““Wonderland was a huge hit in 2018 and received standing ovations every performance. Our audience has been calling for its return since it closed and it’s clear they feel an ownership of Beth Steel’s beautiful play.  

“It’s rare that theatre resonates so strongly with a community, producing tears and laughter in equal measure. I’m sure the production will capture the imagination of the audience again, whether they’re returning or seeing the show for the first time.  

“I’m also thrilled we’re taking it to Northern Stage, where the story will resonate just as deeply.” 

“**** This is a big play…full of heart and very little sentimentality” – The Guardian

“powerful and pertinent - ****” – The Stage

“Richly theatrical - ****” – What’s On Stage

“Unmissable” – British Theatre Guide

“*****” – East Midlands Theatre

“This is a fine start for Adam Penford as the Playhouse’s new Artistic Director,” – Nottingham Post

Wonderland runs from Friday 8 February through to Saturday 23 February 2019 at Nottingham Playhouse and from Wednesday 27 February to Saturday 9 March 2019 at Northern Stage. 





Romeo and Juliet - Review - People's Theatre

Romeo and Juliet

People's Theatre
2nd Oct 2018

Romeo and Juliet is my least favourite Shakespeare play. I confess to disappointment that this was the People's Theatre choice this year.  I am in a minority. It's a crowd pleaser, everyone loves Romeo and Juliet except me. I think my dislike must stem from a bad production seen some time ago. And possibly Leonardo Di Caprio can shoulder some of the blame. I am always impatient with the fickleness of the characters, and the unreasonable feud. Do any of them even know why the two families don't like each other?

So it takes something special to get me on side for this one. Would People's Theatre be able to sway me from my prejudiced outlook?


Director Anna Dobson took her inspiration from the BBC's Peaky Blinders, bringing the play into post war 20th Century. This gives plenty of reasons for unrest and dissatisfaction in life to account for the many grudges and battles between opposing factions, and gives the wardrobe and set builders the opportunity to be a little more creative. No doublets and pantaloons here, and no rose covered balcony. The set is industrial, with barrels, packing cases and chains in place of the streets of Verona and rosy arbours. The cast are dressed in Tweeds and flat caps, swords replaced with flick knives and cudgels. The women dressed beautifully in furs and lace.
And in the background haunting Nick Cave tunes.

You know the plot - The Montagues and Capulets create fear and mayhem in the streets of Verona, violence erupting whenever the two factions meet. But two meet and fall in love - Romeo, a Montagu, and Juliet a Capulet. They enlist the help of Friar Laurence who marries them in secret. Meanwhile Juliet's father has brokered a marriage agreement with Paris.
I won't be spoiling the plot if I tell you it doesn't end well.

Craig Fairbairn and Emma Jayne Richards sizzle on stage with barely controlled passion in their scenes, capturing and conveying to all around, the immediacy of their attraction to each other and the all-consuming nature of their love.

Richard Jack gives an exceptional performance as the hot tempered and lewd Mercutio- the friend whose temper and loyalty contribute to the tragedy.

It is a fast paced, visually stunning and beautifully executed production. Did the team succeed in impressing me with their Romeo And Juliet? They did. They played a peaky blinder.

It runs until Saturday 6th October.

Denise Sparrowhawk

The Last Seam - Review - Northern Stage

The Last Seam

Cast at Northern Stage
27th Sept 2018


Written by Garry Lyons
Directed by Daljinder Singh
Produced by Deborah Rees

Cast:  Cathy Breeze, Ray Castleton, 
David Chafer, Jamie Smelt, Emma Tugman

Over the past year I have listened to the conversations around shipbuilding and the loss of our once great industry. The Last Ship and Launch Day were staged. I came to Launch Day and listened to the stories and saw a little piece of history brought to life, and loved it. But - you know there's got to be a but - the Coalfields girl in me was just a little bit - just a smidge - disgruntled that the other great industry of the north seemed to be forgotten. So when I saw that there was a play about mining coming to Northern Stage I stuck my hand straight up for the chance to review it! Finally, the mining was getting its moment in the limelight. I hoped that the miners would be given as honest and sympathetic a treatment as the shipbuilders had received. Coalmining will forever be tainted with the horror of The Strike. It elicits emotional and passionate responses in people. Even now decades later the mention of the strike has a polarising effect. There is no middle ground and the wounds have not healed - they linger, mostly hidden, like a piece of shrapnel under the skin, until someone jars it and the old pain flares up. Would the Last Seam capture all of that? Would it show us an honest portrayal, or tabloid sensationalism?  

Cast's production centres on the closure of the Hatfield Main Colliery in Doncaster. One of the last three deep seam mines in the UK. In 1993, almost 10 years after the strike, British Coal ceased production and the mine was passed through a series of private companies, many of which went into administration, Finally, a loan of £4million from the National Union of Mineworkers enabled the production to move to a new face. The mine should have been safe till Summer 2016 - but after a change in carbon tax and withdrawal of Government funding the mine closed in 2015 with just two weeks notice. Four hundred and thirty men were laid off. How does a community survive when the very life breath is taken from it? 

The Last Seam is the story of the miners, their wives and families, and their community. It is built up from the stories listened to and recorded by the writer Garry Lyons. He says in his introduction to the play that he changed very little of the words - merely wove them together to build the play.  And because of this the play is honest, it holds together with integrity and compassion. It is emotional, there is anger, hate, and sorrow but there is also love, and pride and above all humour. The miners were proud men. The job they did was hard - backbreaking, and no-one wanted that for their children, they wanted better for their kids, but they were immensely proud of what they did. It defined them, and it defined their community. 

The Last Seam shows the disintegration of their way of life; the ferocious fight to survive in the eighties and nineties. What struck me most as the play progressed was the switching of roles - the women in the end were the ones left fighting. It was telling for me that at the end it was the women who chained themselves to the pit railings and protested the closure. The men seemed beaten - not  defeated as such, but resigned, as finally having seen the process so many times they had not the heart to fight this one last betrayal. "We saw what was coming" is a refrain throughout the play. 

The performance by the five actors was spellbinding, they addressed the audience like one half of a conversation - remembering, explaining, telling us their stories, against the backdrop of the pit locker room and a soundtrack of punk bands. 

Did the Cast crew do justice to my mining heritage? Yes they did. it was an incredible performance.  It does not descend into sensationalism, nor morbid pessimism; there is no pity, no condescension, but there is grit and pride, there is empathy, and honesty and integrity.  (It is a credit to the professionalism of the entire team that even when the performance was unexpectedly interrupted, they resumed after the enforced break without a slip.) The five actors played their parts impeccably, impassioned, sympathetic, and completely believable.  

The Last Seam returns to the North East on Thurs 11th and Fri 12th October at The Peacock, Sunderland. It is well worth seeing, whether your background is mining, or shipbuilding or modern commerce and call centres. There is so much that we have lost - not just jobs and industries, but community and humanity. So much in this play rings true even today - perhaps if more people could experience theatre like this then we might begin claw some of it back. 

Denise Sparrowhawk 

The Desert Queen - Arts Centre Washington - Review

The Desert Queen

Arts Centre Washington
26th July 2018

Hands On NE present this new play by David Farn - The Desert Queen: the Adventurous Life of Northern Hero Gertrude Bell
Directed by Neil Armstrong

Gertrude Bell is a name I have heard, without really knowing much about her beyond a vague awareness that she was a female adventurer. I have to admit I am somewhat ashamed that I did not know more about this amazing woman. Certainly I did not know that she was a local hero, nor the extent of her achievements - not just as a bold adventurer but as a political and social reformer.
David Farn's play is an enlightening, informative and entertaining piece of theatre.
Phillippa Wilson plays Gertrude Bell in what is essentially a monologue punctuated by interjections from the various male characters (and a French stepmother) who have an impact on her life. These characters are played by Brian Lonsdale. Phillippa Wilson creates a character who is bold and forthright, honest and sympathetic, with great compassion and humour. Brian Lonsdale bring equal amounts of humour to the play in the cameo roles he plays. He portrays her companions, her father, brother and stepmother and her lovers - he moves from one character to another with a flourish of head gear, or the straightening of his back, or the flick of a hand...each one presented with humour and each one clearly important to, and beloved of Gertrude Bell.
The audience is addressed throughout so that we feel we are part of the play - Gertrude recounts her life story to us - invites to share in the stories, and this makes it feel very personal. We do feel that we know Gertrude Bell by the end of the play.

There is an enormous amount of information given in this play. David Farn has given us the best history lesson, taught by someone with a love of the subject and we come away with so much knowledge without realising we were learning anything at all.

The Desert Queen is on tour until 6th August in various venues across the region and everyone should see it. Tickets are available online at www.ticketsource.co.uk/hands-on-ne-cic or from the venues.

Denise Sparrowhawk

Tour dates and Venues
27th-28th July - Lit and Phil, Newcastle
30th July Winter Gardens, Sunderland
31st July Little Theatre, Cleadon
2nd Aug Fulwell Community Library
3rd-4th Aug The Exchange, N Shields
5th Aug City Theatre, Durham
6th Aug Customs house, S Shields

Hands On NE are crowdfunding to support the development of the tour. Click the link  to give your support The Desert Queen .

Preview - Temple - Royalty Theatre

Preview

ROYALTY THEATRE TO PRODUCE TEMPLE

Peter Kelly and Lorna Breeze in rehearsal for Temple.

Credit: Royalty Theatre

The next production at Sunderland's Royalty Theatre will be Steve Waters’ political drama "Temple".  The play premiered at the Donmar Warehouse, London in May 2015.

Set amidst Occupy London's occupation of St. Paul’s Cathedral in October 2011, the play is a fictionalised account based on rigorously researched fact, of events within the Church of England in reaction to the protests. The powers that be are compelled to close the cathedral’s doors and institute legal proceedings to remove the protesters.

Temple is the second production to be staged in the Royalty’s Studio Theatre this year, following the highly-acclaimed Five Kinds of Silence in January. A strong cast includes Peter Kelly, Lorna Breeze, Olivia Bowern and Nikki Slack. 



Plays remaining this season are Temple (25-28 April), Move Over Mrs Markham (21-26 May) and The Wind in the Willows (25-30 June). 

Tickets can be booked via www.ticketsource.co.uk/royaltytheatre or on 0333 666 3366, and are priced at £8 (£6.50 concessions).

Any queries may be directed to the chairman, John Appleton, on 0797 730 4481 or via e-mail at chair@royaltytheatre.co.uk.

Breaking the Code - Review - People's Theatre

Breaking the Code

People's Theatre 

13th Feb 2018

The impact of this show begins as soon as you take your seat – the stage is set with box shelves with typewriters and other paraphernalia each side of the stage, in perfect symmetry against a backdrop of oversized dials, dramatically lit, and at the front a single bare table and chair.

As the play starts a man – Alan Turing - enters, sits at the table and positions himself prone, one arm outstretched across the table, his head resting on the arm, he rests motionless as broken sentences, music, and electronic noise blare out in a cacophony of sound. This sound, harsh and abrasive will mark change of each scene as time switches between each flashback of Turing’s life.
The scene changes are swift and almost clinical as the cast and crew move props swiftly and silently in almost choreographed movements.  

From the very first line uttered Richard Jack holds us spellbound with his sympathetic, compassionate portrayal of Turing. The first scene is his interview with the police officer Mick Ross, reporting a burglary in which very little of worth has been taken. It becomes increasingly obvious that there is more to the burglary than Turing is admitting, and Detective Ross grows increasingly suspicious. You can feel the undercurrents of distrust and anxiety between Turing and Ross as the questions become more pointed and the answers unsatisfactorily vague. And yet it is also filled with humour – as is the whole play. It deals with such heart-breaking injustices and yet it is not at all self-pitying. It portrays Turing as a bright, intelligent, passionate, and compassionate man. A truthful and principled man. Lacking social skills, he appears gauche and awkward at times and yet is transformed when he speaks of his work, of the love of mathematics and philosophy.  Jack’s delivery is impeccable. From the young, adolescent Alan to the older, jaded man he is utterly believable.

The supporting cast all give excellent performances, but acknowledgements should go to Adam Kadow as Christopher, Richard Gardner upholding the law as Detective Ross, and  Eileen Davidson endearing as Turing’s mother. Steve Robertson is outstanding as Turing’s gruff, forgetful boss at Bletchley. While Nathan Hussain as Ron leaves us wondering whether he was a good guy or a bad guy – louche, charming, but dishonest.  

Breaking the Code is a funny, emotional, heartrending play. It seems horrific to us now that a man who was instrumental in helping end the Second World War should have been so hideously treated – act two really only hints at the difficulties that Turing encountered before and after his arrest. He is a national hero and yet was ostracised by the very people whose freedom he helped to win.

I wonder, did he take a bite of the poisoned apple to escape a life he felt was untenable,  hoping a charming prince would save him, or did he do it, knowing he had achieved all he could in the circumstances, and would finally join his prince, the boy he had loved, and who had inspired his entire life’s work?

This is the best performance yet from The People’s Theatre. It runs until Saturday. You should not miss it.

Denise Sparrowhawk

Animal Farm - People's Theatre - Review

Animal Farm

People's Theatre
12th Sept 2017


As we enter the auditorium the stage is set - backlit with a low light silhouetting the shapes of a doorway and blocks of buildings, music plays in the background. There is a vaguely menacing feel to it all. The lights go down and the stage lights come up to reveal a run down farm yard - Manor Farm. The cast enter, dressed in black with gold buttons on epaulettes, giving a hint of military uniform. Each one carries a helmet with features to denote which animal they are - cows, chickens, sheep, horses, pigs...And then from the back of the auditorium Old Major speaks. He speaks of change that will come, a revolution, of a time when man will fall, and he warns them to avoid becoming like Man at all costs. The animals respond to his words with baas, moos, clucking. They are then scattered by Mr Jones the farmer.
Jones, played by Patrick Robertson, is a cruel, drunken man who has let his farm go to seed neglecting the crops and mistreating the animals. On day he goes too far and the animals, left unfed rise up against him and chase him from the farm. Old Major's revolution has come!

This production is a collaboration between the People's youth and adult theatres. It is cleverly done with minimal props and costumes, reflecting the austerity of the farm. The stage is full of animals at the start of the play and gradually the numbers reduce until at the end, only a handful are left as those who question the pigs are removed - even the young pigs who are tricked into a confession of guilt are not spared. The young actors take on their animal personas well - adopting the mannerisms of each animal. I think they have had a lot of fun preparing for this play and their preparation has paid off with dividends. There are some lovely performances - I especially liked the chickens and the sheep!

Orwell wrote Animal Farm in 1945 to expose the soviet myth - communism was meant to be about equality but what is revealed here is that no matter what the ideals of man - or beast - might be, human nature takes over and all leaders become self-serving in the end. No-one is truly equal. Someone is always more equal than the others. Standing up for what is right means different things to different animals and voicing a differing opinion is dangerous, but sometimes must be done. When the animals were working together they were happy and successful, but easily mislead. The message of the play is - we must all strive to recognise the truth and stand together to uphold it - otherwise we will end up like the poor animals of Animal Farm.

Animal Farm plays until Sat 16th Sept. It is a lovely production - go see it.

Denise Sparrowhawk

The Pitman Painters - Review - Royalty Theatre

The Pitman Painters

Royalty Theatre
16th May 2017

After a year long wait, I finally got to see this production by the team at the Royalty. Lee Hall's northern classic was scheduled to run last season but unfortunately had to be cancelled at the twelfth hour. I was keen to see how the team at the Royalty tackled the play, especially considering the enforced hiatus.

It is one of my favourite plays, probably because Lee Hall writes with such empathy about the north east. His characters are entirely believable and are written with genuine affection and humour yet he does not sugar coat them. So with the Pitman Painters we have five irascible characters who argue and bicker, sometimes in  fun, sometimes in earnest, yet manage never to fall out altogether despite their disagreements.

They come together for the unlikely purpose of taking an art appreciation class with the WEA. It very quickly becomes clear that the tutor's planned programme is way above the heads of the pitman and so a compromise is found - they will learn to appreciate art through participating in art themselves - they will be painters. It is glorious to see their development from huffy, defensive, reluctant painters into a group who are confident and assured enough to voice their opinions, and to exhibit their art.
Their forthright salt of the earth manner provokes plenty of chuckles from the audience.

There are some fair performances - Kristian Colling as George Brown - the stickler for the rules and regulations, holds the group together, breaking up the arguments when they start to get too earnest, particularly between Harry (Graham Alex) and Jimmy (Michael Fletcher) who just can't see eye to eye about anything. Yet just as often, George stalls the progress of the group when regulations look like they may be contravened.
Matt McNamee takes on the role of Oliver Kilbourn - the pitman who is most affected by the art class. Oliver's character is different to the others, as he struggles inwardly with the idea of becoming something other than a pitman, and this is a challenging first major role for McNamee. He acquitted  himself well, though his performance was lacking some of the emotion I expected from his character. That said he has certainly grown as an actor and I look forward to seeing how he develops in future roles.
David Farn plays the intellectual and rather pretentious art tutor who benefits from the group. There are some lovely moments when he begins to pontificate and is undercut by the pitmen and Mrs Sullivan (Corinne Kilvington).

What makes the show for me is the clear chemistry between Michael Fletcher, Graham Alex and Kristian Colling. Their timing and delivery is almost perfect, and the banter between their three characters acts as a foil for the seriousness of Oliver Kilbourn.

It's a play with a message that is still relevant today though it is set in the mid-20th Century, social class, capitalism, nationalisation, working class aspirations and bourgeois pretensions. Well worth seeing, Pitman Painters runs until Sat 20th May.

Denise Sparrowhawk