Out of Woodstock – Underbelly, Cowgate
Follow a young man’s descent into one of the worst festival disasters in recent history. Its legacy is rooted in an unleashing of Millennial anger.
Baby Boomers enjoyed the summer of love, with Woodstock 69, united in their quest for peace and harmony. Thirty years later the attempt to recreate this significant cultural event, with Woodstock ’99, brought about overpriced beer, boobs, and misogyny.
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This play intrigues, based on real life events during the infamous music festival which ended in carnage and controversy. Poor organisation and dollar hungry management created a ticking timebomb as revelers exploded in the accumulation of sweltering unbearable heat, poor sanitation, serious sexual assaults, looting and several deaths.
Written and directed by Tom Foreman, Out of Woodstock touches on all of the key incidents with the use of audio snippets from the actual festival which places the audience firmly there. Nu-metal was the dominant force in music at the time which spoke to a generation of young people. A divisive genre of music with Woodstock 99 establishing its legacy as the soundtrack of toxic ‘white male middle class anger’. However, it’s a joy to hear the thrashing sounds of Limp Bizkit, Korn and The Offspring in the Big Belly theatre.
With fantastic use of lighting to portray the madness of the moshpit, Foreman’s retelling is energetic and engaging. Unfortunately, there are moments when the action is at times disjointed with the use of prerecorded audio for other characters, whose energy does not sound akin to the levels on the stage.
Theatre does at times require suspended disbelief, however the total omittance of any kind of American accent was unusual, for a festival so ingrained in the US culture of the time.
Nonetheless, an entertaining account, and if this triggers your interest, check out the Netflix documentary which further unravels the chaos.
Running until 25th August 2024 at 5pm.
Reviewer: Gill Lewis
Reviewed: 13th August 2024
North West End UK Rating:
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