RANDOM. To 12 April.

London.

RANDOM
by Debbie Tucker Green.

Royal Court (Jerwood Theatre Downstairs) To 12 April 2008.
Mon -Sat 7.30pm.
Runs 50 mins No interval.

TICKETS: 0207 565 5000.
www.royalcourttheatre.com
Review: Harriet Davis 20 March.

Strongly-written play, powerfully performed.
Debbie Tucker Green’s portrayal of a black family shattered by violence is both touching and genuine. This is helped in no small way by Nadine Marshall’s staggering performance, in which she slips from cynical twenty-something female, to middle aged monosyllabic male, whose pain can only be expressed through barely audible grunts. In Marshall’s hands, it’s a heartbreaking performance.

The play gets off to a slow start. The sister character – who dominates – describes in detail the minutia of her daily routine; she wakes up to burnt porridge, her younger brother is snoozing in his musty teenage bedroom, her slow-moving, reticent father exchanges a few words with her mother (‘wha yu want fe ye dinner?’ ‘Lamb.’).

When initially it looked as though the sister alone would guide us through events, I feared that this one-sided viewpoint could become rather limiting. In fact the narrative really takes its colour from the supporting cast, including the sister’s lacklustre colleagues, her brother’s posturing, street-wise friends and, particularly, the mother character, whose quiet knowing is acknowledged through a thick West Indian accent.

Gradually, a pattern emerges. Through methodical time checks (“one thirty; lunch break.”) it becomes clear that something is approaching, some unseen element which promises to change this family’s lives irrevocably. And sure enough, there is a sudden, jolting change of pace. In the space of little more than a line, tragedy hits. A soft-spoken policeman tells the shell shocked family that “There’s no need to hurry.” Implicitly, it’s too late for their son. The final quarter of the play concerns itself with the slow onslaught of grief, and the mixed, often inappropriate, reactions of the neighbourhood.

Green has a keen ear for language, and there are sections of the play which feel self-consciously lyrical. For many in the audience, the simple inclusion of words like “Truss mi” were enough to elicit smiles; West Indian dialect is so rarely portrayed authentically. While the narrative is at times slow moving, the wait pays off. Green’s story provides a truthful insight into the painful, personal cost of teenage violence.

Cast: Nadine Marshall.

Director: Sacha Wares.

2008-03-29 01:38:14