Blackbird - Theatre Royal Windsor

Blackbird is an uneasy night out at the theatre, but an unforgettable one.

 

This powerful presentation of a controversial subject both captivated and unsettled the audience as they witnessed the unexpected reunion between a middle-age man and the woman he had an intense relationship with when she was only a minor.

 

Refusing to dilute or sensationalise the subject matter, writer David Harrower and director David Grindley have created car crash theatre in as much as no matter how uncomfortable you may feel about the explicitness of the subject matter, you can’t look away. 

 

This grip on the audience was enhanced by two tremendous powerhouse performances by Robert Daws and Dawn Steele as the illicit and regretful lovers. Both pulled no punches when portraying the mental and physical anguish of the past and the ramifications that followed.

 

Although Blackbird is controversial in its theme, it is also a very fine piece of drama.