Punk Rock

4th – 8th February, Corpus Playrooms, 7pm, £6/£8

Punk Rock was instantly identifiable to a student audience that was not long ago dealing with the stress of exams, UCAS forms and even applications to Cambridge. This backdrop to the play was at times understated and believable and at others somewhat strained, but this may have just been a case of first night nerves and did not detract from the quality of the performance.

Though slow to start, the writing soon allowed the actors enough room to build and grow into their characters. This was particularly the case for Helena Eccles playing the part of Lilly, who soon delivered a lovely, honest portrayal of a young school girl finding her identity after a displacing childhood. In particular, Eccles engaged wonderfully in her moments onstage alongside the talents of Matt Clayton, playing William. In these moments Simon Stephens’ script was used to full advantage and lines such as ‘I hate normal people, normal people should be eviscerated’ were not over-acted but reproduced in a relaxed and easy manner.

The play achieved an almost awkward comedic effect, that was clearly relatable to an audience that recognised particular school-hood practices, nuances and social constructions: teenage relationships, school humour and talk of skittles replaced all major food groups. This was perhaps exaggerated due to the use of believable but perhaps quite prominently stereotypical cast and costume choices, such as the awkward bullied type in ‘Chadwick’ (Alex Bell), the tall and domineering private school bully ‘Bennett’ (Matt Bradley), and the school’s popular yet likeable sports jock ‘Nicholas’ (Rob Oldham).

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This blunt stereotyping did not detract from certain individual performances, such as Bradley’s portrayal of Bennett who was surely detested throughout the audience. His character was both unsettling and instantly recognisable and played with an alarmingly accomplished ease. This was aided by particular moments where the script took a sinister and at times frankly disgusting turn, becoming intensely unnerving and extreme.

The performance of Clayton, however, playing perhaps the most prominent and challenging character of William, shone throughout.  He confidently span off a range of personalities ranging from charming and wonderfully awkward to a shifty, twitching adolescent on the verge of breakdown. The fact that he gained sympathy as well as revulsion was testament to a convincing and immersive performance, and he offered the pace, magnetism and electricity at both light and dark moments, vital to the play’s success.

Directorially speaking, I felt the play was managed well and did not fall into any traps with its naturalistic stagnancy but indeed used this to its great advantage. For example, following blackout scene changes, accompanied by heavy punk rock music, the actors constructed physically striking and sharply choreographed tableau images. This was impressive and well crafted. The wonderful script was bursting with comedic, tender, and unsettling opportunities that were handled ably by the cast, and overall it was a production I was impressed with.

However, I can imagine that the performance will have only reached its full depth and quality after a few nights of performance, and I would be interested to see its progression towards the final night.