★★★

“A very British tale of love lost during the second world war years”

In the intimate 90 studio at Park Theatre is One Day When We Were Young, written by Nick Payne in 2009. A three scene, time shifting two-hander about the lives of Leonard (Barney White) and Violet (Cassie Bradley).

A dowdy room in a Bath hotel where the young unmarried couple are spending what appears to be their first night together, and possibly their last, the night before Leonard heads off to war. It is 1942 and with promises of waiting for each other forever, the nerves and innocence of the couple shows; one is terrified to go to war and the other naively wants the night to be romantically perfect for them. It is not and they are interrupted by the bombs of the Baedeker raid.

The blitz is shown with blinding lights flashing and loud sound effects – and a very simple “special effect” showing the window suddenly broken. Dramatically that all works well. But then the actors were suddenly shouting that they must get dressed and get to the bomb shelter, whilst taking the bed covers off the bed and rolling them up, running off and on with bits of furniture as they take the bedroom apart and replace it with a park bench.

Scene two is a snowy park in the early 1960s. This middle scene should have been the most heart-breaking but the dynamics between the couple does not quite gel in both script and acting. Clearly Violet had not waited for Leonard and she has been married since 1944 to her music teacher husband, has a 16-year-old son and 12-year-old daughter plus washing machine and television, living her perfect life; whilst Leonard is a broken man having survived being a POW in Japan. He lives with his mum in Luton.

The final scene – and post more rather unnecessary moving of furniture around the small set – it is 2002, which makes the pair now at least in their late seventies. Leonard is still totally devoted to Violet, and Violet is now a widow… Old age and Leonard sadly has onset dementia as he repeatedly asks how with the train delays her journey to his Luton home has been. There is a confusing power cut (unexplained historically, mea culpa if wrong), and one rather lovely moment when Leonard lights a pair of sparklers for light.

The sound (Aidan Good) uses music from each period to set each scene, but if you didn’t know the snippets of music playing it didn’t help. Scene two has continual low-level playground sounds which worked to show they were in a park. But in the third scene the inclement British rainstorm sound keeps disappearing and then returning; and it would have carried more gravitas of the doomed love affair, if it had continued throughout the final scene, even at a low-level.

A very British tale of love lost during the second world war years. One Day When We Were Young shows how we Brits have an inability to show emotions and to say what truly should not be left unsaid. The script doesn’t fill in those complex undertones, so feels a tad unfinished. In the final scene, Violet’s rendition of “their song” is sung without Leonard present, which seems an odd directorial decision by director James Haddrell – as that could have shown each of their true feelings in that moment.

ANTIGONE [ON STRIKE]

Park Theatre

★★★★★

“a magnificent tale of what it is to be human”

Antigone [On Strike] is a most intriguing, interactive show where you get to vote by responding to questions related to the show and its subject matter, like a creative poll full of suspense and challenging arguments. Through a series of student workshops in East London, writer and director Alexander Raptotasios brings us a tragic story of two Muslim sisters that have been treated with prejudice and hate, indicating how human rights are so delicate and often overlooked for the ‘sake of the collective’s safety’.

A 14-year- old girl, Esmeh, left the UK to become part of the Islamic State in Syria. She now finds herself in a refugee camp, her UK citizenship revoked, her appeal to return to the UK rejected and with her baby seriously ill. She and her sister Antiya, who’s back in London, are desperate to bring her home, but no one listens or cares to help. So Antiya decides to go on a hunger strike, hoping to set things in motion and create change before it’s too late for Esmeh and her child.

The structure of the play mixes TV debates, news updates, social media posts and live streams, video calls (video content created by Vittoria Belli), personal interactions and public ones to create a piece that is electric. The similarities to Sophocle’s Antigone are there, a sibling that’s rejected by society, a powerful but insensitive leader, conflict between personal opinion and government rules to name a few, but they merely elevate a production that is more than capable to stand on its own two feet.

Spectacular acting from all the actors, who bring to flesh real people with complex intentions and different views. There is significant resonance in the father-son relationship between Home Secretary Creighton, played by Phil Cheadle, and Eammon, played by Ali Hadji-Heshmati, who disagrees with his father’s way of handling Esmeh’s case and decides to stay true to his own convictions, even if that means going against his father publicly. Esmeh, played by Hannah Khogali, doesn’t appear onstage, but we do see her on video, giving her own side of the story in a fragmentary way, a right that was taken away from her throughout her whole case. Sorcha Brooks is a wonderful host, talking to the audience, commenting on the answers we give and moving the plot forward. And the final speech of Antiya’s, played by Hiba Medina, about sacrifice and social change brings goosebumps by creating a shared moment of social consciousness and accountability.

Marco Turcich’s set comprises of a commanding white rectangular stage with an ancient Greek aesthetic, separating the auditorium into two sections, with audience on both sides. The actors walk around, jump and stand in different places, creating a balanced visual playfulness.

Anyone who’s even remotely compassionate about their fellow humans and interested in unpacking political and humanitarian issues, and that should be all of us, must watch this show. This production points out how important it is to be part of the conversation, through a magnificent tale of what it is to be human, especially during a time that the media play such a big role in every aspect of our lives.

ONE DAY WHEN WE WERE YOUNG

Park Theatre

★★★

“A very British tale of love lost during the second world war years”

ONE DAY WHEN WE WERE YOUNG

Park Theatre

Reviewed on 3rd March 2025

by Debbie Rich

Photography by Danny Kaan

Previously reviewed at this venue:

ONE DAY WHEN WE WERE YOUNG

ONE DAY WHEN WE WERE YOUNG

ONE DAY WHEN WE WERE YOUNG

ANTIGONE [ON STRIKE]

Park Theatre

★★★★★

“a magnificent tale of what it is to be human”