REVIEW: PLAYS FOR A POOR THEATRE by Howard Brenton at The Bread and Roses Theatre 17 - 21 February 2026
‘thoughtful and bold‘ ★★★
An enjoyable revival of three of Howard Brenton’s PLAYS FOR THE POOR THEATRE. The three selected short plays, each broken by a short interval, are intense and experimental, heavily focused around the physicality of the three actors.
The three plays chosen are classically absurdist and complement each other by focusing on the alienation of the characters. The first play, GUM AND GOO, focuses on a girl who interacts with two imaginary friends, existing in an alternate universe. Though the audience will catch onto the unusual structure and fragmented dialogue, this play in particular is perhaps a challenging one to lead a triple-bill with, as it’s less descriptive and much harder to follow than the other two. With such a small amount of time, it’s crucial to capture attention from the beginning, introducing the audience to Brenton’s style with a more descriptive story.
The middle play, HEADS, was my favourite, a short and critical exploration of physical prowess vs mental prowess, and the hopeless search for perfection. It’s both written in an absurdist style and with light-hearted language, a great blend of styles, delivered in a suitable fashion, with a perfectly relatable and relevant subject matter. Although the final and most brutal play, THE EDUCATION OF SKINNY SPEW, was played in a more light-hearted manner than I was expecting, it was certainly entertaining. The style of delivery of dialogue, however, almost entirely removed the absurdity of it all. It was too funny, making it quite hard to place thematically. To fit with the other plays, and with Brenton’s work of that time, I would expect much more anger and savagery. In general, however, the plays fit together well and compliment the casting.
As intended with this set of plays, the absence of a proper set highlights what is achievable with just three actors - all of whom are outstanding at handling such a challenging and physical repertoire (Ben Watts, Niamh Callan and Alex Morgan Edwards).
Overall, a thoughtful and bold production of a rarely performed triple-bill.
PLAYS FOR A POOR THEATRE by Howard Brenton
dir. Connor Godwin
Divided Culture Company
The Bread and Roses Theatre
17 - 21 February 2026
BOX OFFICE https://www.breadandrosestheatre.co.uk/
Photographer
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Seb Gardiner
Seb is a playwright currently based in Reading.
