No Quarter

Synopsis

"You were brought up on mythology. That's why you're all stuck, all angry, a prince in the wrong story. A prince with a black eye." Fleeing a world he has rejected, Robin finds solace in his music and the sanctuary of his remote family home. But as his kingdom begins to crumble around him, how far will he go to save it and at what cost? Polly Stenham returns with an anarchic twist on the drawing room drama. Following That Face and Tusk Tusk, her new play asks what is the right way to live?

Our Review:

Michael Coveney - 17 January 2013

It's been a long wait for Polly Stenham's third play, but well worth it. This is a country house drama brought bang up to date, with Tom Sturridge as Robin, the Jimmy Porter of all disaffected whacked-out mother's boys, trying to renegotiate his relationship with his chaotic, alcoholic mater Lily (Maureen Beattie), before the ship goes down.

Elements of both former plays, That Face and Tusk Tusk, re-occur in Stenham's details of dysfunctional families, wayward teenagers, missing parents, drugs, spiked drinks and posh kids’ hedonism; Tom has been home-schooled - he claims to be "landed gypsy" - and has dropped out of music college and bonded with his tattooed coke supplier, a Scouse army veteran (Taron Egerton), sharing his birthday with his mother's memorial.

But there's nothing re-heated about Stenham's writing. It's fresh, scabrous, often very funny, the long mother ...

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Latest User Review

steveatplays - 4 February 2013:

Tom Sturridge's soused, bitter, vulnerable and ultimately empty Robin makes for an unforgettable character, anchoring a wonderful ensemble. He rocks and spits his words, a snake reluctant to bite, yet unable to resist his nature. Maureen Beattie's dysfunctional mummy is at the heart of his emptiness, her Svengali-like manipulations resonant, both before and beyond the grave. Zoe Boyle and Joshua James embody youthfulness and decadence with inveterate glee, two would-be saviours who are unlikely even to be able to save themselves....

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