South of the border, we’re unenlightened as to the all-round splendidness of Scottish actor/director/composer Cora Bissett. An Olivier Award winner for Roadkill, her hard-hitting look at sex trafficking, Bissett returns to Stratford East with a sparky, feisty urban musical about a group of Scottish teenagers who band together to speak up for the rights of asylum seekers. Based on a true story, it’s a wonderfully bracing blast of female energy.
The terrific cast display bags of oomph and attitude and the verve of the piece, conceived and directed by Bissett with a script from David Greig, more than compensates for the occasional broad brushstrokes of the plot. The unlikely gang of six — four daughters of asylum seekers and two Scottish girls — bond in the community of Drumchapel High School and they are not going to take the impending deportation of one of their number lightly.
Just in case we get too swept up in this multicultural idyll, Greig’s self-deprecating script bursts bubbles at the right moments. Patricia Panther, pictured, sings with conviction throughout. If you could bottle the energy from this show, no one would need to argue over North Sea oil reserves. The spirit of Joan Littlewood is surely looking down.
Until March 2 (020 8534 0310, stratfordeast.com)
