Alex’s latest play Pig was received by full houses and wonderful audiences this September.
Below are a selection of reviews the production received.
A Younger Theatre
“The simplicity is infectious as the insignificant and voiceless are chased around a video game, senselessly, before being devoured by the system, so is Gaz and so many like him. Gaz is a representative pawn within the system, playing into their hands and ticking their boxes without ever once realising it. The set is square and angular, reminiscent of a computer screen. With Perspex boxes, barcoded, that light up as they are used and discarded with both precision and pace. They morph from props, to furniture and back to containers again without a clunk to speak of.
Pig is as visually interesting as it is socially relevant. ”
The Upcoming
“Pig tells the story of law and order in contemporary Britain “from both sides of the thin blue line”. It was written by Alex Oates from interviews with both police and convicts.
Now, that might sound like every other try-hard, edgy play out there, but the talent that seeps from Oates’ script really sets it apart. The dialogue trips along like a beat poem, rhyming and assonating with timing that is skilfully delivered by the cast and excellently directed by Alex Mitchell. The line direction is near-perfect and what could easily have turned into a talking-heads black box affair is kinetic and full of energy, thanks to Mitchell and his team. There isn’t a stand-out member of the cast: James Stayner, Matthew May and Alice Beaumont are each as good as the next. The characters are well developed and full of heart.”
Jo Salkild
“Pig is a clever title for a clever production. It’s a show about cops and robbers: Ted and Coral are jobbing cops, beat-bobbies who want to rise through the ranks and know all too well the downside of policing in the UK in the twenty-first century. Gaz is a likeable career criminal, who names his pet pigeon in hommage to the way in which the young hero of the Ken Loach film names his pet kestrel, hence the title of the piece.
The show is written by Alex Oates, who is a writer to look out for in the future. His voice is fresh and his dialogue is multi-layered poetry that carries you along on ripples of consonants.”
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