Margaret Thatcher is dead but Arthur Scargill lives on. Confronted with the repercussions of the mining strike decades later and mirroring our financial recession, two stories unfold simultaneously. Michael Strobel brings Scargill emphatically to life, giving the man a firm character with subtle idiosyncrasies, a human element and, at times, an overwhelming stage presence. Lucinda Curtis, however, transforms the play with her witty and fluid performance. Although her manner is jovial at times, it does not lessen her impact, her words packing equal resonance to those of Stewart Howson – as former miner Lawrence Davies – and the aforementioned Strobel. Huge credit must also be given to Ade Morris’ superb script, which offers an engaging end to the events that form our history.
New Town Theatre, 4 – 28 Aug (not 16), 3.30pm (4.50pm) £9.00 – £13.00, fpp259.
tw rating 4/5
[hb]
Sections: by Hannah Van Den Bergh - ED2011 Theatre Reviews - tw rating 4/5 | Tags: New Town Theatre, Quidem Productions
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