Review: BULLY BOY

Patrons of quality theatre will be immersed by this gripping and powerful production concerning gross military misconduct, which will leave audiences pondering over the morality – or more aptly, the futility of war.

Written by English-Danish comedian/writer Sandi Toksvig, this play explores two casualties of war whose lives have been shattered. Major Oscar Hadley (Jaymie Knight), who is confined to a wheelchair after serving in the Falklands war, is investigating a murder allegation against Private Eddie Clark (Patrick Cullen), who allegedly threw an eight-year-old boy down a well during a military assault in the Middle East.

Serious and heartfelt, an unlikely bond predictably develops between these two men and humorous moments in the second act are a welcoming relief from the intensity of emotions.

Themes of honour amongst soldiers resonate in this thought-provoking and topical play, which also details the depersonalization of soldiers and associated post war traumas – the permanent mental scars, depression, torturous therapies and suicides. The ideology that war makes politicians look good is also explored.

Audiences will connect emotionally with these characters, portrayed by two up-and-coming actors whose intense performances will engage and ultimately plant seeds of doubt to the validity of war.

This small production is simplistic, playing on a tiny stage in a fringe theatre with basic props of a table and chair, but it intimately draws in the audience, who are seemingly on stage as the drama unfolds.

The ironic twist in the final moments of the play will astonish and possibly anger audiences, prompting them to ask who is the real victim – the crippled Major, the mentally scarred Private or the innocent eight year-old boy who so tragically lost his life? (MMo)

Until Mar 26. Blood Moon Theatre (in The World Bar), 24 Bayswater Rd, Kings Cross. $20 – $25. Tickets & info: anightofplay.com