Kate Tempest is a poet and rapper, jobs whose cadences shine enticingly through in the punchy rhythms of her writing. Theatre has borrowed her for her debut play and I heartily suggest we try to make the arrangement permanent, as Tempest provides a welcome shot in drama’s arm.
Three south London friends, Ted (Cary Crankson), Danny (Ashley George) and Charlotte (Lizzy Watts) are experiencing a quarter-life crisis simultaneously, on the anniversary of the (unexplained) death of their mutual friend. It is to the late Tony that, microphone in hand like freewheeling performers at a spoken word gig, they address their monologues of hopes and fears, as they try to balance the conflicting allure of eternal youth and premature middle-age. When exactly, they wonder, is the right time to fold away rave-fuelled dreams into flatpack Ikea furniture?
There’s a pulsing energy to performances and production, directed with flair — and an onstage drummer — by James Grieve. Tempest’s lines are deliciously quotable; the morning after the rave before, Ted announces: “I feel like I’ve swallowed a planetarium.” “I feel like my face is doing interpretative dance,” counters Charlotte. Tempest’s is a talent to be harnessed, not wasted.
Wasted runs until May 19 (0844 482 8008, roundhouse.org.uk).
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