Review: Journey's End at The Hexagon

James Kell • Published 1 Mar 2010 14:00 0 Comments

RC SHERRIFF'S classic account of soldiers coping with the trauma of life in the trenches has lost none of its extraordinary potency.

The play's enduring appeal lies in the complex and profoundly moving relationships between the men, especially the charismatic Captain Stanhope, the avuncular Lieutenant Osbourne and the ingenue, Lieutenant Raleigh.

Key to the whole play is the way these relationships evolve. Raleigh enters young and naive, hero-worshipping Stanhope who was an older boy at his school.

Stanhope, who is in a relationship with Raleigh's sister, worries that he will write to her about how the ravages of war have driven him to increasingly depend on drink.

Osbourne's death in a raid puts a strain on the men, who themselves are gearing up for a huge offensive in a few days' time.

But the play has never been without flashes of humour, and they were rightly accentuated, mainly courtesy of beleaguered cook, Mason.

The Hexagon audience was a mixture of young history students, coming to the play for probably the first time, and people who were perhaps much more familiar with Sherriff's story, based on his own First World War experiences.

Regardless, all were left in respectful hush at the climax of this superb rendition of a lasting testament to the cruel horror of conflict.

Also at South Hill Park, Bracknell, from March 17-20. Tickets: 01344 484123

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This article appeared in Reading Chronicle 25 Feb 10

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