Radical Theatre: A Northern Tradition
Political Theatre Now
Red Ladder are touring again. The Leeds-based company is one of the country’s oldest radical theatres. Starting life as an agit-prop outfit in London during the political turmoil of 1968, it has survived by constantly reinventing itself.
Inevitably, in the woke-saturated arts world of the early 2020s, this means they create dramas which explore issues around identity. But, because they are Red Ladder, it’s a cut above. Nana Kofi Kufuor’s script is the story of a black teacher who sees one of her pupils being roughed up by police “outside Marks & Spencer’s” but does nothing to intervene. It tackles head-on the complex interactions between class, race and misogyny at work in British society.
A co-production between Red Ladder, Leeds Playhouse and Oldham Coliseum, it’s stuffed with questions and packs a great deal in. And that’s much better than asking no questions at all. Wesley Cen…