The Son (by Florian Zeller) at Bromley Little Theatre

This was this month’s Saturday matinee trip for 40 theatre group members. 

With such a deep pool of talent to draw from it is no surprise that it was possible to find appropriate actors to play the lead parts in this highly emotional play about a deeply disturbed and depressed adolescent boy. After the breakdown of his parents’ marriage, Nicolas feels abandoned by his father who has remarried and has a baby boy. Unknown to his mother with whom he lives, he has ceased attending school and just walks the streets all day. When Anne, the mother, discovers this she appeals to his father Pierre, for help in uncovering what is wrong. Both parents are bewildered and cannot understand why and how Nicolas is feeling and are frustrated and at times angry with him. Nicolas asks to go to live with his father and stepmother Sofia who tries hard to be sympathetic, but it is difficult for her as she finds it tiring just taking care of her own infant. 

This is a very powerful drama about not understanding and not coping with mental illness. The four main characters portrayed so sympathetically by Josh Clarkson (Nicolas), Chris de Pury (Pierre), Roxanna Graves (Anne) and Lucy White (Sofia) certainly do it justice and I have to say I was crying at the end. 

Contributed by Pat Ward