We'll Bring The House Down

WE’LL BRING THE HOUSE DOWN by Mike Brook and Steve Schollar was a new play and I saw it on its World Premiere night.   It is a play in a political setting, but not a play about politics.   But it tells of one man’s journey and political people say political things (or so says the programme).  The political things include spats about democracy, sayings of past politicans, the miners’ strike and a clash of political ideals between a father and son.

The action took place in one setting, an office in the House of Commons. The set was excellent and of the highest quality. It had doors off both left and right; although we were never told where they led to.  It was an excellent representation of an office at Westminster.  Props and set dressings were impressive, especially the photocopying machine and large centre piece portraits of Tony Blair and Jeremy Corbyn.   There were nice little touches, such as the notice board, hat stand,  

The costumes were in keeping with the characters, the period and with good attention to detail.   There was a good contrast between the smart suits of the Conservative and Labour politicians more casual look.    Stephen McKinnon as Tony Smith-Brown lived up to the Tory Toff stereotype in his navy, wide pin stripe suit and shiny black shoes.  I was mesmerized by Emily Browne’s shoes!

The lighting was effective and well controlled. The sound was good, the voices clear and easy to understand.   The sound effects; exploding photocopying machine and TV were good.

This strong cast brought the script to life and each actor was well cast and confident in their roles.    The pace was good and the characters were established and well rounded.   The humour was very British – polite with just a hint of sarcasm.    Although not political, I thought a basic knowledge of political history in the UK would add to one’s enjoyment of some of the references.   There was lots of business, comings and goings and threads to the story, but overall, the general theme of shenanigans, double dealing, back stabbing and blackmail, never changes, whatever party is in Government.   Director, Steve Schollar, who co-wrote the play, assembled some strong actors and other than a small stumble over words, due to first night nerves, this was a solid and enjoyable production. The subject matter made a refreshing change from the usual lightweight and sometimes frothy subjects covered in amateur theatre.

 

 

 

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