13

Overview

Walking into the show for the first graduates of The Actors Program I had fairly high expectations.  This cast of fourteen have spent the year being taught and mentored by industry professionals, so that’s a year of training basically towards this final show… all right, I’m being a little reductionist but that’s what my unknowing mind automatically presumes.

The play 13, by Mike Bartlett is set in London 2012.  In the midst of economic gloom and civil unrest, the Prime Minister considers war while the people of London consider their role in the midst of her decision.  The play is an amalgamation of multiple characters interaction with this narrative and moves very swiftly through one story to the next.  Directed by Sophie Roberts, 13 took the script and often literally ran with it.  There was no sense of calm as the burgeoning storm brewed on the outskirts of the people’s reality and that sense of disquiet was ever present throughout the show.

Staged in the long dark hallway shaped theatre at the Basement, the streets of London strewn with rubbish and placards, walls yelling their political allegiances and the dark tunnel of the theatre space was successfully and cleverly manipulated through both design and direction.

This play deserved some serious English accents (as well as American for the residing U.S. diplomat and his family) and each actor tried their hand, some more successfully than others.  As a stickler for accents being done well, I was, for the most part impressed for the efforts taken in this fairly long show, to retain the accents.

As is the case with a lot of plays with big casts, this play had some stand out acting.  It was with great relish that my attentions swung to Samuel Christopher at each appearance, who played Stephen, the atheist friend to the right wing prime minister.  His character was cynical and dry witted, harsh and entirely enthralling.  The other stand outs were Holly Shervey and Jordan Mauger who played the American husband and wife with fairly flawless accents and fantastically intimidating intensity.

As a testament to the calibre of skills coming from the Actors Program I endorse their efforts.  The show is worth it if you’re remotely interested in seeing hard hitting issues in the world of youth and politics.  Alternatively if you want to know what the fuss is all about with the Actors Program it is a long show but it gives a little back for your efforts.