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The Green, Green Grass of Home: Mr Jones An Aberfan Story - Finborough Theatre

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A life of hope and promise, interrupted, lies at the heart of Mr Jones: an Aberfan Story. The play follows two young people in Aberfan before and after the disaster that killed 144 people, including 116 children. It’s an emotional coming-of-age tale of intersecting lives, family, love, and the shock of tragedy. With two vivid performances and strong characterisations, you feel immersed in 1960s Welsh small-town life. It’s now running at the Finborough Theatre , after performances at the Edinburgh Festival and across Wales.  The Aberfan disaster is well known in the UK but perhaps less so elsewhere. The facts of the tragedy are confined to the programme notes rather than in the piece. On 21 October 1966, the catastrophic collapse of a colliery spoil tip on a mountain above Aberfan engulfed a local school, killing many. The play avoids the causes and negligence, instead focusing on those working and building lives in the town.  Writer-performer Liam Holmes plays Stephen Jones, a...

Someone to watch over me: Dangerous Lenses #dangerouslensesplay @VaultFestival


As I am writing up my thoughts on Dangerous Lenses I can see the neighbours opposite have switched on their lights. They look like they're getting ready to head out. And the people below them are setting the table for dinner. Perhaps the life of a blogger and the recluse at the centre of this piece are converging.

The premise is that Ann (Grace Chilton) who lives alone is watching the lives of her neighbours as hers goes by. But when a new tenant and his daughter move in. And the tenant says she has no daughter. Ann starts to obsess about what she saw and didn't see.

Written by Brooke Robinson and directed by Melissa Dunne, this monologue is a great exploration of loneliness and obsession in the city. Chilton is great (and a little creepy) as the lonely people-watcher.

It's enough to make you reflect on all the times you've made assumptions or watched others. Assuming you've done that sort of thing.

Papercut Theatre, presented Just To Get Married at the Finborough in 2017. They're presenting this piece along with another, Lola at the Vault Festival until 27 January. It would be possible to see both in the same evening if you're quick.

But the Vault Festival is getting started. With over 400 shows on sale it's a showcase for great new writing, theatre and comedy under the Leake Street arches at Waterloo Station. Now in its seventh year, the programme this year is wild and varied. With something for most people, it'll be running through to 17 March. Ticket prices for events start at £5.

⭐️⭐️⭐️

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