Dovehouse Theatre. 22 April 2026
By William Golding. Adapted for stage by Nigel Williams.
Director and set designer: Robert Bateman. Sound by Phil Ypres-Smith
Obsidian is a young group, born of the pandemic and 2 men’s mental health challenges. They don’t shy away from ‘heavy’ material but, on the contrary, throw themselves at it. This was my first experience of this company, and also their first ‘straight’ play.
A combination of circumstances meant I had to go to their tech and dress rehearsal, so I expected lots of glitches and issues. There was none of that. I wondered if the experience would suffer from the lack of an audience. It didn’t. What I saw was a really polished, obviously well-rehearsed and well-directed play.
I last read the book at school and hated it, so I didn’t have high hopes for the play and I wasn’t sure how well this novel would translate to stage. This is the story of a group of boys, stranded on a deserted island, after a plane crash. They start out following the rules of civilised society but soon descend into savagery, with 2 of the group dying.
The set was simple but very evocative of a plane crash. There was debris scattered around the stage, including fuselage and seats from the plane. There were platforms for hills, and camouflage nets for the trees, branches strewn around, and very realistic looking rocks, which the director’s mum told me were part of a job lot of foam they were gifted. Lighting really added to the atmosphere and was fully integrated with the set. It was sometimes hard to see where set ended and lighting began. Lighting also worked seamlessly with choreography. There was a scene where the actors danced, stomped and chanted, while a red light strobed. It gave a really sinister feel to the action and made me gasp. The actors never put a foot wrong.
Sound was perfect. There was music weaving its way through the action, evocative but unobtrusive. It never interfered with the action. An intermittent drumming worked perfectly, just loud enough to add to the atmosphere.
Costumes were well-chosen and appropriate, with all the cast in school uniform, using ties to show they were from different schools.
On to the acting. Ralph was played perfectly by Jaidon C Grant. He has an amazing voice, which filled the auditorium effortlessly. He was very animated and had some great facial expressions. He portrayed Ralph’s changing emotions with skill. I certainly look forward to seeing more of him.
Alice Bennett’s Piggy was an absolute delight. She held an accent perfectly throughout. In fact, I thought she was from ‘up North’ until I was told otherwise. She gave a great performance as the rule-loving, conscience of the group.
Miya Mitchell played the unpleasant, petulant, psychopathic Jack to perfection. She gave him a really sinister edge which sent a shiver up my spine.
Devlin Young made a great Percival. He was very believable as the younger boy, coming across as childlike without being childish. It was in his voice and his whole demeanour. Very well done.
The whole cast was utterly believable at all times. Callum Byrne was wonderfully sinister as Roger, smirking gleefully while urging Jack on. Cameron Kyffin as Sam, Dylan Norris (Simon), Kyle Lough (Eric), Kieran Scott (Maurice), Chris Westwood (Bill), and Paige Yeomans (as Henry) were all wonderful. They were all so disciplined that, even during blackouts, they could still be seen acting. We even had a cameo from the director Rob as the rescuer.
This was an amazing piece of theatre. I was utterly surprised by how much I enjoyed it and I can’t wait to see more from this company. They work so well together you’d think they’d been at this for decades.
Well done Obsidian, and thank you.
Reviewed by – Lesley L.
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