Kyoto
The Swan Theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon

ALTHOUGH they say they want the audience to feel hope, Joe Murphy and Joe Robertson’s docudrama revealing the machinations involved in the finally successful 1997 UN Cop3 (Conference of the Parties), a gathering of 192 countries struggling to agree on necessary actions to combat the menace of global warming, is both a celebration and a lamentation. 

Cop29, due to take place in November, will have to face the fact that since that event, marking a rare moment of international accord, global emissions have soared. The major players, however, have apparently decided they can’t afford to do much about the potential Armageddon. 

Billed as a political thriller, Stephen Daldry and Justin Martin’s play centres on the convoluted arguments between national representatives, some determined to balk any measure that would impinge upon their national interests.

At times the quibbles can consist of the place of a comma or brackets in the final protocol.

The main opposition comes from the US, determined to prevent any limitation on its dollar world hegemony, and the Saudi-Arabians, equally committed to protecting the exploitation of their oil wealth.

However, their arguments are masterminded by Washington corporate lawyer and former energy secretary in Ronald Reagan’s government, Don Pearlman. Employed by the major oil companies, the “Seven Sisters,” to block at all costs, any international agreements on timetables or national targets on carbon emissions.

Stephen Kunken gives Pearlman the stature of a Shakespearean villain as he self-assuredly manipulates both characters and language to frustrate the desperate efforts of Estrada-Oyuela, the Argentinian diplomat and the conference chairman, to attain the necessary unanimous agreement. 

Like Iago, he confides his plans and intentions to the audience but, unlike Shakespeare’s schemer, the audience can understand his despair in human nature. In his opening monologue, he accurately describes the increasing ills of our present world: “I think we can all agree on one thing: the times you live in are fucking awful.”  

Miriam Buether, the set designer, has transformed the theatre into the conference chamber with some audience members’ identity lanyards and sitting among the delegates.

Although two-and-a-half hours of conference wrangling could have made for a play that might have been demandingly static, Daldry and Martin inject both movement and moments of humour, even comedy, into a compelling production. 

Older audience members will be particularly amused by the ebullient British representative, John Prescott, Tony Blair’s deputy prime minister at the time who, when told by the chairman that lunch has been cancelled owing to time pressures, chases the Japanese delegate to grab the key to the door.

Delegates to the forthcoming Cop29 should see Kyoto if they are to avoid another round of national and corporate short-sighted self-interest leading to another quarter-of-a-century slide towards the abyss.

As one of the smaller states threatened with climate annihilation charges the power-mongers: “Yours are emissions of luxury. Ours are emissions of survival.”

Runs until July 13. Box office: 01789 331-111, rsc.org.uk.