WILL STONE is frustrated by a performance that chooses to garble the lyrics and drown the songs in reverb
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Tony’s Last Tape, Omnibus Theatre, London
The rare integrity and political conviction of Tony Benn shines through a remarkable dramatisation of his diaries
On a journey: Philip Bretherton as Tony Benn
[Robert Day]
RITA DI SANTO points out the social experience of exploitation and oppression that inform the popular winners at this year’s festival
PETER MASON is tickled by a new book and exhibition that mine the rotten anachronism of the monarchy for laughs
A Nazi zeppelin whodunnit, death amidst detoxification, a twistaholic’s delight, and noir fiction for criminals
STEVE JOHNSON salutes the mellifluous tones and clear-minded political message of a uniquely relevant Birmingham-born singer-songwriter
STEVE ANDREW enjoys an account of the many communities that flourished independently of and in resistance to the empires of old
TOM STONE urges you to catch the last dates of a New York singer/songwriter, never afraid to challenge her audiences musically or politically
“NO-ONE ever told me there was so much potassium in a banana,” recalls Tony Benn, to much amusement, as he records his final diary entry.
Though the man himself has been dead for five years and wasn’t prone to recording his innermost thoughts in front of a live audience, this engaging and immersive theatrical conceit, the brainchild of director Andy Barrett and director Giles Croft and based on Benn’s diaries, sees Philip Bretherton don a dressing gown, spark up a pipe and embark upon a remarkable performance as the formidable parliamentarian.
The challenges are obvious. Bretherton is over 20 years Benn’s junior, doesn’t immediately resemble the Labour Party stalwart and has to deliver a monologue, complete with those mellifluous intonations and Bennite mannerisms, for over an hour.
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