BRIXTON CALLING

Southwark Playhouse Borough

★★★★

“funny, sharp, and full of twists and turns”

Growing up in South London in the early 2000s, Brixton Academy already had legendary status. My first gig was there: racing to the front barrier with friends to get as close as possible to the stage. The electric anticipation of entering a music venue has an affinity with stepping into a theatre, and the staging of this production of Brixton Calling, with the neon newspaper clippings and autographs scratched into the wall and floors (Nik Corrall), leaves you in no doubt for what’s in store.

Brixton Calling, adapted by Alex Urwin from Simon Parkes’ memoir, captures that feeling with exhilarating clarity. This high-energy production tells the true story of how Parkes, then a 23-year-old public school-educated outsider, bought a crumbling old cinema in Brixton for £1 and turned it into the cultural juggernaut that it still is today. From The Clash to Fela Kuti, the Academy became a cultural powerhouse, and this show captures the chaos and charisma behind the scenes.

Urwin’s script moves at pace, leaping from Parkes’ childhood in Grimsby to the privileged corridors of a Scottish boarding school, and eventually into the heart of 1980s Brixton. It’s funny, sharp, and full of twists and turns. Max Runham is compelling as Simon Parkes, and Tendai Humphrey Sitima brings spark and range as his friend and collaborator Johnny Lawes. Together they morph into dozens of characters, from posh schoolboys to gruff Glaswegians, often switching roles and accents with impressive agility.

Originally conceived as a solo show, director Bronagh Lagan wisely suggested expanding the cast to better reflect the diversity and energy of the Brixton scene. It works well, though the structure still leans heavily toward Runham, who steers much of the narrative via direct address, with Sitima often in more supporting parts. That doesn’t mean Sitima is not impactful. His portrayal of Lawes’ encounter with the police during the 1985 Brixton Riots is shockingly visceral.

What elevates Brixton Calling is its use of the music that makes the venue a success. Runham and Sitima, both accomplished musicians, weave live performance seamlessly into the storytelling – punctuating moments of revelation or emulating the many artists who’ve graced the Academy’s stage. They move easily between guitar, piano and vocals, infusing the production with authenticity and rhythm.

The play does lose momentum slightly in its final third. As the energy of 80s anarchism gives way to 90s hedonism, the focus shifts from Parkes’ personal journey to broader musical history, and the emotional momentum dips. A rave sequence suffers from muddy sound mixing (Max Pappenheim’s only real misstep), with dialogue often drowned out by overpowering bass.

This gives way to a series of near-misses – an expensive booking collapse, a violent attack, a brush with the IRA – that push Parkes to question if he can keep pouring everything into the Academy. He eventually decides to sell up, with the venue becoming the crown jewel of an expanding Academy chain. There’s a sense of bittersweet inevitability, a nod to how the independent culture that helped places like Brixton to thrive often gets swallowed by bigger fish with bigger pockets.

But Brixton Calling is, above all, a feel-good celebration of live music and bold risk-taking. It’s a rousing reminder that sometimes all it takes is a bit of luck, a lot of guts, and a deep love of the arts to make something out of nothing – at least in a corner of South London.

BRIXTON CALLING

Southwark Playhouse Borough

Reviewed on 25th July 2025

by Amber Woodward

Photography by Danny Kaan

BRIXTON CALLING

Rags

Park Theatre

Reviewed – 14th January 2020

★★★

“Maitland’s vocal control in particular is quite staggering, bringing a coiled strength to the small auditorium.”

Often described as the sequel to ‘Fiddler On the Roof’, ‘Rags’, originally written by Joseph Stein (who did also write ‘Fiddler’) enjoyed only four days on Broadway in its 1987 debut. Regardless, it was nominated for five Tony awards that year. But, more baffling still, it has never been brought back to the stage, that is, until now.

Revised by David Thompson and directed by Bronagh Lagan, ‘Rags’ tells the story of Jewish immigrants making their way to America at the turn of the twentieth century. Among the boatloads of hopefuls is Rebecca (Carolyn Maitland), with her son David (as played by Jude Muir for this performance), who, without any family or a nickel to her name, is determined to succeed in this new promised land.

As with most sequels, ‘Rags’ has loosely the same narrative arc as its predecessor: A community of traditional Jews fights off the outside world on multiple fronts, be it via assimilation, persecution or modernisation. Certain familiar characters re-appear as well. Ben (Oisin Nolan-Power) for example, a nice but nerdy tailor seeks the affections of Bella (Martha Kirby) whose father, Avram (Dave Willetts) disapproves of the union. I mean, why not just call them Motel and Tzeitel and have done with it.

But ‘Rags’ does depart from ‘Fiddler’ in its sheer volume of historical content, including everything from the 1909 Shirtwaist strikes and the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire to the emergence of feminism, the rising popularity of Yiddish theatre and song writing, and culture clashes, not only between different ethnicities and religions, but also first and second-wave immigrants. In order to include all of this, every character symbolises a school of thought, be it capitalism or communism, traditionalism or modernisation. And this leaves little room for any of the characters to have any, well, character. The older generation – aunt, uncle and father – bring a little Yiddish flavour from the old country, but aside from that everyone is a bit bland.

The soundtrack (Charles Strouse/Stephen Schwartz) flits between a klezmer-ragtime fusion, and modern musical numbers. The former is accompanied by a swaggering Klezmer band wondering the stage, playing various bit-parts as they go. The small ensemble brings a tonne of humour and spirit to the production. Clarinettist Natasha Karp is a particular joy to watch, her constant facial expressions a kind of running commentary on the story’s goings-on.

The more modern numbers, however, are generally forgettable and feel mismatched with the themes of the plot.

The set (Gregor Donnelly), consisting of a wall of suitcases, and sparse furniture, provides an atmosphere of transition; of both hope and hardship. Whilst Rebecca, Bella and David have just arrived, the small apartment has been the home of multiple immigrant families before this one, and will no doubt go on to house many more after, and the set succeeds in keeping this feeling of flux throughout.

The cast themselves are gloriously talented, doing their best to inject colour and excitement to a story that drags on at least a half hour too long. Maitland’s vocal control in particular is quite staggering, bringing a coiled strength to the small auditorium.

But whilst ‘Rags’ was not intended as a direct sequel for ‘Fiddler’, it’s hard not to consider it as such and, as is often the case with sequels, it doesn’t stand up to comparison. Yes, there are a couple of catchy numbers, a couple of funny scenes, and a couple of moments of heartfelt reflection. But not enough on any count, and unfortunately this revival is less a story of rags to riches, and more rags to run-of-the-mill.

BRIXTON CALLING

Southwark Playhouse Borough

★★★★

“funny, sharp, and full of twists and turns”

BRIXTON CALLING

Southwark Playhouse Borough

Reviewed on 25th July 2025

by Amber Woodward

Photography by Danny Kaan

Recently reviewed at Southwark Playhouse venues:

BRIXTON CALLING

BRIXTON CALLING

BRIXTON CALLING

Park Theatre

Reviewed – 14th January 2020

★★★

“Maitland’s vocal control in particular is quite staggering, bringing a coiled strength to the small auditorium.”

The more modern numbers, however, are generally forgettable and feel mismatched with the themes of the plot.

The cast themselves are gloriously talented, doing their best to inject colour and excitement to a story that drags on at least a half hour too long. Maitland’s vocal control in particular is quite staggering, bringing a coiled strength to the small auditorium.

Reviewed by Miriam Sallon

Photography by Pamela Raith

Rags

Park Theatre until 8th February

Last ten shows reviewed at this venue:

JOIN US