Boyhood at the Pleasance: a live hip-hop play about becoming a dad at 17
Attic Theatre Company's 70-minute play about teenage fatherhood runs at the Pleasance until Saturday 31 October, with a live hip-hop score by Conrad Murray.
Growing older and growing up are not the same thing. That is the starting point of Boyhood, a new play from Attic Theatre Company now on at the Pleasance, in which a 17-year-old from south-west London finds out he is about to become a father.
The story
Written by Conor Hunt, the play follows J (called Jay in The Reviews Hub's write-up), played by Dia Peters. According to Everything Theatre, we first meet him on a swing in the play zone of Bygrove Park, reluctant to give up his favourite spot to sit and think, despite the protesting mums.
Everything Theatre describes a life shaped by poor mental health, limited opportunities, a fractured family and too few reliable male role models. The Reviews Hub says the play probes the gap between the masculinity young men are expected to display and the emotional maturity they are rarely taught to develop.
Built with young men
Hunt developed the script with more than 70 young men, many with lived experience of the issues the play explores, Everything Theatre reports. The Boyhood Collective, five young men aged 16 to 25 formed through those workshops, also contributed to rehearsals. The collective's members are Victor Daniels, Ben Lonergan, Kayin Pearce, Michael Sookhan and Lewis Stevens.
Two performers, many characters
Tom Bellerby directs a two-person cast. Kate Donnachie plays virtually everyone else in J's life, from his swaggering mates to his Dad and his girlfriend Al, according to Everything Theatre, which calls her performance quite brilliant. The Reviews Hub also praises her energy and versatility, and her singing.
Opinion is a little more divided on the lead. The Reviews Hub credits Peters with commitment but feels some emotional transitions could be more finely shaded. Everything Theatre, meanwhile, singles out the outstanding performances overall and rates the show Good.
The music
Both reviewers agree on the soundtrack. Conrad Murray, an award-winning hip-hop theatre-maker, provides a live score of rap, beatboxing, sampling, looping and ballads, with a hint of Irish folk, says Everything Theatre. It picks out the looped song 'What Am I Thinking?' as a highlight. The Reviews Hub calls the music one of the production's strongest elements, closely integrated with the action.
The look
Caitlin Mawhinney's set is a metallic world of hanging chain-link drapes, metal bars, half-benches and streetlights, lit by Joseph Thomas in a stark, fragmented style, according to Everything Theatre.
The caveats
Neither review is a rave without reservations. Everything Theatre finds the writing can feel unclear and dramatically confusing at points, leaving the music to do much of the storytelling, though it concludes that the craft and performances often carry the show. The Reviews Hub notes that transitions between characters occasionally draw attention to the mechanics of storytelling, but calls the play thoughtful, with a distinctive perspective on growing up.
Both land in a similar place: at 70 minutes, this is a short, urgent piece that Everything Theatre says opens up a conversation worth having with young men, parents, teachers and anyone who wants them to find a better way forward.
Know before you go
- Where: The Pleasance, London
- Until: Saturday 31 October
- Running time: 70 minutes
- Company: Attic Theatre Company
Prices and booking details were not given in the reviews, so check the Pleasance's website for tickets.
Sources: Everything Theatre, The Reviews Hub
