THEATRE

This is a stunning piece of theatre that will have you glued to your seat. It concerns 19 year old Mark who lives on an estate in Nottingham. He is taken up with the care of his mum, who had him at 16, and her new baby. Excessively taken up, to the point where he wants to kill the baby.

In a brilliant and captivating one-man performance, Joe Doherty makes us see his early life, the problems with Grandad, the stumbling in on Mum and her latest, her addictions, his trouble with the law, the trip to Skegness: never have I been more concerned about the balance of a tub of salt…

Amongst the attitudes that Joe’s brutal life have instilled in him we do see his essential humanity. There may be many issues here, maybe a glut of them, and having taught in a number of Nottingham schools I can say that Mark-alikes are quite imaginable, but mercifully rare. The writing is very tight and keeps the tension high, and Joe Doherty’s performance does not lapse for a moment.

The show was sold out when I saw it – if you can get a ticket you will be in for a really special and memorable experience.