Tron Theatre, Glasgow
Until: Saturday 26 March
Performance Reviewed: Wednesday 23 March
Rating: * * * *
Gagarin Way was the breakthrough play by acclaimed Black Watch writer, Gregory Burke, first staged in 2001. This production by Rapture Theatre is directed by Michael Emans and is touring the country with a great new cast.
Opening and closing with the very relevant song “I Predict a Riot” by the Kaiser Chiefs, Gagarin Way is a comedy drama (more comedy than drama) which tells the story of four factory workers in Dunfermline.
The name of the play comes from a street named after Russian cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin in the mining town of Lumphinnans, known in the 1960s as “Little Moscow”.
Eddie (Jordan Young) has been working at the factory for seven years and although he doesn’t enjoy his job he is still outraged at the work potentially being outsourced.
He and his colleague Gary (Jimmy Chisholm), a former shop steward, decide to rebel and make their dissatisfaction clear by kidnapping one of the directors of the company. It all goes wrong when they realise not only is the person kidnapped not who they expect it to be, but also that they both have very different views as to what the outcome of their scheme should be.
Jordan Young is absolutely fantastic as Eddie. With his fast paced speech, wild eyes and sneer he made me feel nervy just watching. Perhaps being in close proximity (the front row) didn’t help.
Finn den Hershog plays security guard Tom, who is caught in the wrong place at the wrong time, with a nervousness and naivety which bounces off Young’s character well.
Jimmy Chisholm and Dave Anderson (Frank, the victim) both succeed in making the audience feel some sympathy for the situation they find themselves in.
One slight negative is that the political message is lost slightly amongst the jokes. The show succeeds in entertaining but perhaps the more serious issues Burke originally aimed to address with this play were trivialised.
