What I'd Be by Tanieth Kerr, The Brockley Jack Studio Theatre, 410 Brockley Road, London SE4 | until 21 February 2026 ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Review by William Russell

Photo credit: Headache Theatre Productions

What I'd Be

by Tanieth Kerr

The Brockley Jack Studio Theatre, 410 Brockley Road, London SE4 | until 21 February 2026

⭐⭐⭐⭐ Review by William Russell

“A moving meeting between estranged sisters.”

Two sisters meet in the park following their mother's funeral. It is an awkward encounter as they have been estranged for years. Their mother had been a difficult apparently abusive parent and to escape her Maakayla had left home ten years before while her younger sister Ally stayed but dropped out of university. Gradually they relive the past and work out what has caused the estrangement. Well performed and resourcefully directed by Katy Livsey it is a moving affair although the early sequence in which images from their past are projected behind them is a bit confusing. As they settle down on a park bench to confront their ghosts, however, it all comes together and both players get to grips with the theatre's acoustics. The start is just a mite too quietly delivered but as the hour long play proceeds it all comes together.

Cast

Rachel Jones – Makayla

Beth Hirss – Ally

Creatives

Director – Katy Livsey

Designer – Tanieth Kerr