Lads

Jobless, Actless, Faithless and Dependable,
otherwise known as Nick, Jimmy, Paul and Rich are four disparate youths bound
inextricably together through the ties of friendship. Whilst heading out for a
night on the tiles, they encounter all of the usual obnoxious suspects whilst
embarking on a huge amount of drinking – so a standard night out in London
then.

But this is not to say that this is a standard
piece. Raucous and bombastic, Lads is an exhilarating ride,
not to mention hugely funny. Writer and director James Kermack’s spot on
observations are extended into sharply crafted and dramatized moments of
chorography. The energy of his direction carries you away on the whirlwind of
affectionately mundane excitement that everyone feels at the promise of a night
out on the town with your pals.

Our four lads are played with great verve by Geoff
Breton, Drummond Bowskill, Josh Boyd Rochford and Danny John Noonan. As
they embody the rabble that these boys encounter we see greasy bosses and nasal
gaggles of girls float caustically in front of our eyes. As they banter with
one another the brotherly bond that ties these four knights together is
tangibly there.

Of the four it is Bowskill who steals scenes
however, giving a comedy performance that would rival that of all the great
buffoons. Infinitely charming, Bowskill seems to sit more within a Commedia dell’arte
tradition than the Berkoff that surrounds him.

As with the autocratic Mr Berkoff however, in
the midst of all this revelry it all gets a bit much. This company are
forcefully leading their audience by the hand instead of inviting us to follow
them and at points it feels awkwardly like an issue of Nuts
with an agony aunt page tagged on at the end.

But even if Kermack falls down in the more
naturalistic sections, Lads is still a textured and
confident piece of theatre which shows the emergence of a strong talent.
Shakespeare it’s not, but for pure balls-out entertainment, Lads
is guaranteed to get you through the January doldrums.

– Honour Bayes