Rhetorical flourishes: a performer in a Margaret Thatcher maskTristram KentonReview at a glance
Six veterans of the Falklands War — three British, three Argentine — come together in Lola Arias’s devised show, staged as part of the London International Festival of Theatre. A hybrid of documentary, re-enactment and cathartic reunion, it combines personal testimony with video, fiery songs and playful interludes to portray both sides of the conflict.
It’s an instructive piece — full of historical detail. But it is also a probing one, exploring different understandings of the background to the war, its unfolding and its legacy. The range of techniques is startling. Toy soldiers are used to dramatise a raid, while another scene recreates a therapy session. There are moments when memories are excavated in a style that’s almost archaeological, and others in which performers put on grotesque masks to act out the rhetorical flourishes of Margaret Thatcher and the Argentine president General Galtieri.
Not all the elements function perfectly. For instance, a sequence that mimics the format of a cheesy chat show is flat-footed. But this is work of extraordinary compassion, constructed with a mix of jagged flair and careful intelligence. It’s a tribute to the intensely collaborative processes that distinguish theatre as an artform — and a courageous statement about the power of those processes to enhance life itself.
Until June 11, Royal Court Downstairs (020 7565 5000, royalcourttheatre.com)
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