Sharon Stevens went to The Trials at the Nottingham Playhouse...
The play starts with a man standing in front of the safety curtain with an unrecognisable symbol printed on it. The same symbol is on the front of his green boiler suit. The man, who was later referred to as defendant one, gives his statement to the jury, sharing reasons why he should not be euthanised.
A succession of flashing lights created an atmosphere that made the audience and ourselves unsure of what would happen next. After giving a heartfelt speech, defendant one left the stage, and we were presented with twelve young people (behind the curtain) of varying ages dressed in repurposed hessian sacks and coffee bags made into clothing.
The room was full of mismatched furniture, which gave a sense that we had travelled into a future world. Slowly, it became apparent that the twelve young people were the jury, and they would decide the fate of defendant one. Later, defendant two and three, after hearing the activities that affected their carbon footprint, the efforts they had made to reduce pollution and the effects of it.
The acting was impressive, from the dinosaurs (adults) to the teenage jury. The monologues were long and moving. We were transferred to 2040, where the dinosaurs were scrutinised for their actions from 2018 until 2040.
the theatre was silent, except once when a sob escaped from a child
The audience was there with the jury, feeling their sadness, anger, and confusion when voting after hearing each defendant's statement. This was to the point that the theatre was silent, except once when a sob escaped from a child. I can understand how she felt because this was leading up to the ending of the play, which would have challenged adults to think seriously about their own actions related to pollution and its effects.
Although the message was serious and would have you thinking about your own role regarding pollution and your carbon footprint, some comedic elements brought some short-term relief from the anxiety of making decisions that would ultimately cause someone to lose their life. This was mainly through Tomaz (Jamie Adlam), who, along with Kako (Nevaya Davidson) and Zoe (Marley Simpson), created imaginary playful moments in the snow and went on a flight.
During the Q&A after the play ended, we discovered that Joe Grainge had only taken on the role of Noah since last Friday due to an injured actor. He was unswerving, and we would not have known this by his acting; he was fully committed to the role.
I won't share the details of the play's ending, just to say you may leave the theatre with a different mindset regarding pollution and what we, as individuals, can do to ensure that future generations do not suffer from our inaction.
The Trials plays at Nottingham Playhouse from 14th August until 16th August 2024.
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