"Moving and tragic, yet uplifting"

by Mike Richardson, Head Editor

  R.C. Sherriff's 1928 World War I drama Journey's End, despite the weighty topic and a distinct lack of happy endings, is not a play that will leave you feeling morose and depressed. Set in the British trenches at St. Quentin and based on his own experiences of serving at Vimy, Loos and Passchendaele, it manages to cover dramatic and unsettling events but, in a similar vein to Blackadder Goes Forth, includes a hefty dusting of comedy to lighten the mood and keep the viewer interested.

Based around the few days before the German offensive of March 21 1918, the play tells the story of comrades-in-arms new and old and focusses on the relationships and cameraderie built in the trenches as they go about their daily lives. The story has been criticised as being too "officer-centric", but the range of characters present are diverse both in manner and background and not just public-schoolboy types. The principle characters, hard-drinking veteran Captain Stanhope and the newly stationed Raleigh who grew up together and are from the "upper-classes" play wonderfully off each other, with Raleigh's naivety and Stanhope's grim determination perfect foils for creating tension and drama. The other officers, Osbourne and Trotter are more down to earth folk, having risen through the ranks. Osbourne acts as a friendly father figure for the other officers, imparting wisdom and good dollop of humour while the neurotic, tortured character of Trotter highlights the harrowing mental effects of war.

Playing on it's first night at Milton Keynes to a very good sized audience for a wet and windy Tuesday night, the cast were tight and the production was generally top notch. Subtle use of lighting, audio and smoke effects enhanced the feeling of being there in the trenches and gave a real sense of the kind of terror that the men stationed there must have felt when the enemy guns started pounding. With just one small set, the communal area in a trench dugout, there is a feeling of claustrophobia and intimacy that was sadly slightly lessened by the size of the theatre, or at least it was from our viewpoint in the circle.

Almost inevitably for a WWI drama, the play ends in tragedy. We noticed more than one damp cheek around us as the curtains closed on the final act and even more as "The Last Post" played for a sombre and profoundly fitting curtain call. Moving and tragic, yet uplifting at the same time we both thoroughly enjoyed Journey's End.