MARY CONWAY applauds the revival of a tense, and extremely funny, study of men, money and playing cards
Routine delinquency
MARY CONWAY admires an accomplished drama that explores the consequences of a fatal punch on a desolate housing estate
LOOKING FOR JUSTICE: David Shields as Jacob Dunne in Punch
MEHDI ACHOUCHE explores the constant fascination of cinema with Marxist alienation from Fritz Lang and Chaplin to Bong Joon Ho
FIONA O’CONNOR steps warily through a novel that skewers many of the exposed flanks of the over-privileged
MARY CONWAY applauds the study of a dysfunctional family set in an Ireland that could be anywhere
MICK MCSHANE is roused by a band whose socialism laces every line of every song with commitment and raw passion
New releases from Mountain, Soul Asylum and Michael McDermott
ALEX HALL is disgusted by the misuse of ‘emotional narratives’ to justify uninformed geo-political prejudice
Punch
Young Vic
PUNCH lands at the Young Vic with all flags flying.
Commissioned by Nottingham Playhouse where it premiered last May to glowing reviews, it must, of necessity, make its mark in the capital. As another blazing new hit from the sensationally successful James Graham and as a fine-tuned production from director Adam Penford (also artistic director of the Nottingham Playhouse), it fixes on a true local story and packages it impeccably.
The tale tells of one Jacob Dunne who — on a relatively routine delinquent night out — threw a punch at a young trainee paramedic, accidentally causing his death. What seems to result in devastation for all, finds new and unexpected hope for Jacob and the dead man’s parents as they pick themselves up, cross the divide and commune with one another.
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