It’s quite something when you’re lucky enough to come across that kind of theatrical magic which happens only once in a while – that thing where the audience gets lost in the performance and the story just starts to sing. And what a story!
Ed Saunders-Lee is the writer and performer of the life story of his step-grandfather, First Lieutenant John Cox, a member of the Special Operations Executive who was parachuted behind enemy lines in France and Burma during WWII. In this single hander, Saunders-Lee manages to convey a sense of the passage of time and with it, a battled hardened growth of experience – from naïve young student to war hero who witnesses the horrors of war, with all its complexities. The performance takes place in an intimate space in the round, with a trunk full of props and in an original WWII costume uniform.
This allows scope for audience interaction – ‘is my tie okay?’ … ‘that’s not right, is it?’ – which draws us even more closely into this all too real depiction of just some of what it must’ve been like to be called to action feeling scared, unprepared, excited and horrified all at the same time. Aside from the energy and passion of the performance, what is notable is the way in which it is supported by the most outstanding sound design.
Voice, sound effects and music are edited in perfect timing to allow the actor to breathe life into a cast of characters and support portrayals of action such as the parachuting to a landing which killed a comrade. I thought it was pretty extraordinary that I counted three audible gasps from the audience at points of crescendo, but it was not until the ending of this piece that I realised that even the most jaded of fringe audience members were reaching for their hankies as they watched a collection of old black and white photos of those real heroes we felt we’d just ‘met’ come out of the trunk.
They were left there, proudly displayed and finally, quietly saluted by the grieving war hero, Lieutenant Cox, or was it Saunders-Lee? The conclusion to this show? An immediate standing ovation to the last audience member and not a dry eye in the house/studio.
Reviewer: Susan Cohen
Reviewed: 5th August 2024
North West End UK Rating: