16 March 2017
Limehouse
The Donmar
reviewed by Adam McCormack
Stars ****
The Labour party is in disarray, unable to make changes without the sanction of the unions and moving further to the left. The more moderate membership fears that the party is fast becoming unelectable. No, this is not a summary of the current state of the party under Jeremy Corbyn, but the backdrop for the formation of the SDP by four breakaway party members in 1981. The parallels are, however, painfully obvious and the opening of Steve Waters’ new play has been timed to perfection. Identifying the vehicle is one thing, but executing a production centred around 5 people talking in a kitchen about left-wing politics for an hour and three-quarters is another. The good news is that the intelligent and snappy dialogue and some quite brilliant performances make this a must-see event.
The “Gang of Four”, disaffected party members David Owen, Roy Jenkins Bill Rodgers and Shirley Williams are under pressure. They have just twenty-four hours to put up or shut-up regarding their dissatisfaction following a farcical party conference. Owen has decided to take charge, subverting their usual marmite sandwich meeting at Rodgers’ house in Kentish Town, for a Delia-inspired (his wife Debbie is her agent) Sunday brunch at his house in Limehouse. He is a man in a hurry with fears as to whether he can push the others into forming a new party, and as the guests arrive these seem well founded. Rodgers (Paul Chahidi) is in the thrall of Williams (Debra Gillett) and like her is struggling to come to terms with undermining a party that has been fundamental to their political lives. Jenkins (Roger Allam) is played as a loquacious Europhile who is unsure whether his political life is over and sees a future where the disaffected form a working relationship with the Liberal Party – a scenario that does not appeal to the others. Little do they know that Owen is to force their hand, having arranged an “impromptu” press conference that afternoon. This helps add a nice theatrical jeopardy and an ultimately heart-warming reconciliation of views that leads to the new party.
Each of the five well-known characters is beautifully observed. Tom Goodman-Hill’s performance as Owen is frenetic and passionate. Nathalie Armin’s Debbie Owen is the glue that keeps the group together as the meeting threatens repeatedly to disintegrate. Allam is sublime as Jenkins, hitting the speech-impediment just the right side of parody and capturing the oenophile perfectly. Rodgers is perhaps the most sympathetic character, played as a sartorially and culinary challenged faithful party member, fearful for the future of Labour and his own seat. On Gillett’s arrival on the stage as Williams we could be forgiven for thinking that it was the woman herself and the play makes it clear that she is the heart of the intellectual credibility of the party – ultimately asking the question of what would have happened if she, rather than Jenkins (neither were sitting MPs), had been chosen as the party leader.
This leads to the one shortfall in what is an otherwise exceptional play. We have a perfectly fine denouement when the four depart for the press conference united in their aims. However, Waters and director Polly Findlay gives us a postscript of Debbie Owen talking us through the “what-if scenarios”. Perhaps this was thought necessary for those too young to remember, but the effect is patronising and takes some of the edge off the dramatic pathos we had been left with.
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