Custody - An Important and Powerful Piece of Theatre

As a white female myself, there are certain issues that I will never fully be able to comprehend. I have grown up very aware of the advantages and privileges I have been given because of the colour of my skin and therefore I think it’s additionally important for me to learn more about the horrors that minorities have to suffer through simply for being themselves. Custody is an excellent example of why self-educating and understanding society’s common goals is so important.

Custody is a play created by Urban Wolf and Tom Wainwright which details a family recounting the loss of Brian, a young man who was killed in police custody with no justice. It is told from the perspective of 4 people; his mother, his sister, his brother and his romantic partner. Through a disjointed mix of scenes and monologues, the story of how Brian died begins to get clearer and the audience learns of the complex and challenging affect Brian’s death had on each of their lives.

The structure of this piece is rather abstract. Much of the piece is divided into short scenes, like fragments, which help to form the picture of who Brian was and what happened to him. The show highlights the many different affects of grief though Brian’s family; The utter isolation of his lover, the anger of his brother, the passion of his sister, and the hysteria and denial of his mother.

Upon entering the theatre, you are greeted by all of the actors walking silently in slow motion across the stage. This position is then returned to at the end of the show - when the actors return to walking around the stage again after having recounted their story. They don’t leave the space for the entirety of the piece.

Constantly being viewed from the moment people enter to when they leave the space must be quite a taxing performance environment. It was impressive watching the actors whilst the audience was still interacting in their private conversations. They were able to keep such an intense but truthful aspect in their silent performances - despite the many distractions taking place right in front of them.

The lack of a distinct chronological storyline throughout forces the audience to maintain their undivided focus on the piece as they have no idea when more informstion on Brian will be revealed. In this respect, the show does an excellent job of making the audience listen. However this makes the challenging moments, such as when Brian’s lover breaks down, far more gut wrenching and difficult to watch.

One of my favourite parts of this piece is the ambiguity of Brian. Aside from being a young black man, we know very little of what Brian actually looks like - and that is precisely the point. From my privileged standpoint, I interpret Brian as every young black man who was been wrongfully targeted by the police. He represents the victims of police brutality and so therefore what he looks like doesn’t matter. He could look like anyone - because any young black man could be the next victim.

I have to admit that I wasn’t particularly keen of the repetition and unison speaking which was very prevalent within this show. A lot of lines would be spoken multiple times throughout the performance, sometimes with all four of the characters saying the lines together. Whilst this is a powerful and effective way of communicating a message, I found it a little jarring to watch and offen rather unsettling. Because it was used so frequently throughout the show, I felt like I couldn’t relax properly due to expecting the almost chant-like ensemble speaking to begin again.

The set design (based on a design by Phil Newman) of this show is one of the most interesting aspects of this show. The stage had a monochromatic aesthetic which allowed the focus to remain solely on the actors performances. However, thanks to the ingenious lighting (designed by Will Burgher) on this show, the space was able to feel completely transformed between scenes purely from the lighting.

Overall, this show is a poignant and hard hitting performance. It isnt the most enjoyable piece of theatre, but it also doesn’t feel like it’s needs or wants to be. This show wants to share a powerful and incredibly important message, and it does that superbly.

5 Star Rating: **** Four Stars

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