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There was a grave danger that the offstage drama surrounding this touring production from Out of Joint was going to eclipse anything presented to a paying audience. First its run at the Court was cancelled; the depictions of sexual relations between two 15-year-old female babysitters and a 27-year-old father was considered undesirable in the wake of last autumn’s sexual abuse revelations. Then, suddenly, it was reinstated, amid accusations of the silencing of a precious working-class female voice.
What a good job it was, as this is a cherishably vivid 1982 bulletin from the mischievous and vibrant Andrea Dunbar, who died of a brain haemorrhage at the desperately early age of 29. What Kate Wasserberg’s lively and splendidly acted production makes clear from the start is that Rita (Taj Atwal) and Sue’s (Gemma Dobson) enthusiastic car-seat couplings with married, mullet-haired Bob (James Atherton) are consensual; the girls’ meetings with him provide a rare bright spot of excitement in otherwise tough weeks and tougher lives with few prospects. A fascinating through-line is provided by Dunbar’s sharp portrait of failing, flailing masculinity.
This working-class northern community is feeling the chill economic winds of the early Thatcher era, where manual jobs are disappearing fast. Our liberal London of 2018 will not like the blatant gender inequality on offer here, but this is a valuable 80 minutes of theatre.
Five shows not to miss this January
Until Jan 27, Royal Court
