Sus

Synopsis

The story begins with the arrest of a black man in 1979, picked up on fabricated suspicion charges related to the law at the time. As the play unfolds it is apparent that the police think he is guilty of a violent crime, carried out earlier that evening, closer to home. The play is a tragic study of fascist policemen set against the backdrop of the election that brought Margaret Thatcher to power.

Our Review:

Jo Caird - 11 June 2010

Sus, by Barrie Keeffe, premiered in 1979 just over a month after Margaret Thatcher came to power. Set on the eve of that victory, it was revived to coincide with the recent general election, touring to several venues across England before settling here at the Young Vic. The context of this election was very different from that of the play’s setting, yet this production feels remarkably relevant to the present moment. The decision to revive it, and to do so now, was an inspired one.

Sus takes place in a police station in East London. Two detectives, Karn (Simon Armstrong) and the less senior Wilby (Laurence Spellman,) are waiting for the election results to come in, when Delroy (Clint Dyer) is brought in. He has been picked up on ‘sus’, the law that, until it was repealed in 1980, allowed the police to stop and search individuals under suspicion alone. This is not the firs...

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Latest User Review

peter.baxendale - 19 June 2010:

I first saw this play in about 1980 at the Albany theatre in Deptford. I remember 2 young men almost jumping on the stage in a fit of rage. This production almost had me on the stage this afternoon myself. The whole experience is like sitting watching something you could not belive unfold in front of yuor eyes. I can not say that I enjoyed it but it was a wonderfull example of what makes live theatre on occations so great...

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