Death of England : Delroy
The 2nd instalment of Death of England: The Plays is a story of race, privilege and growth. @sohoplace is home to the full catalogue of plays from this series over the summer and although not necessary to see all three, you do see the story from different perspectives which makes for an interesting watch.
Paapa Essiedu is taking on the role of Delroy, for 100 minutes he fills the space with a high energy performance. This piece feels lighter in ways than the first play in the set ‘Michael’ and although ‘Delroy’ deals with difficult themes, it is done in a way that has the audience on board and at times laughing in the aisles.
If you have seen ‘Michael’ you will have an awareness of who Delroy is and the part he plays in the overall story, but if you haven’t – Delroy is a Black British man of Jamaican descent, he is the best friend of Michael and is partners with Michael’s sister Carly and will soon be a father. Delroy is a court bailiff whose life changes in a split second. With one small decision he takes a different path and he is sharing this story with us.
We first meet Delroy when he is having a ankle monitor tag fitted, over the course of the piece we learn how and why he ended up here. He is the victim of racial profiling, not for the first time in his life and his choices forever change his path, he loses the things most important to him but gains knowledge of himself and grows as a man over the course of this 100 minute play.
Paapa Essiedu is a powerhouse performer, I can only imagine he is exhausted after every performance because it is clear to see he put his all into this performance. There is high emotion throughout the evening as well as wonderful moments of improvisation, mainly around some audience interaction sections. Paapa does well at going with the flow of the audience while still keeping the scenes on track.
The lighting design is a real star of the piece here, Jackie Shemesh and Chris Davey have really thought about how the lighting can add to the drama and feeling of a piece. In particular, the courtroom scene is fully brought to life by turning the spotlights onto the audience and reminding us of our part in that story.
This is an incredibly powerful display of Black Theatre, it teaches us lessons about not only ourselves but about the world around us. It is a story that is unfortunately relatable to many people and validates their feelings of injustice and prejudice.
This show was reviewed on the 30th July 2024 at @sohoplace, London where the series of three plays run until the 28th September 2024. Tickets available here: Death of England: The Plays | Tickets | @sohoplace
Review written by Rosie Browne
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Photo credit: Helen Murray
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