Following its successful run in May, Tom Woffenden and Hamish Clayton’s dynamic comedy, Cockfosters returned to the stage for just three days this September. Aptly presented underneath a railway bridge at the Turbine Theatre, the play follows the unlikely journey of two strangers from Heathrow to Cockfosters.
Whilst our two main characters (Tori and James) attempt awkward conversation in a wonderfully middle-class way, they are interrupted by a series of songs, recollections and odd characters played by the ensemble cast. From the Flashheart-esque Richard Head (masterfully brought to life by Kit Lloyd) to the hen party for Tina Fey, the fast-paced turnover of differing personalities is the unwavering highlight of this play.
Among the standout performances, Kit Lloyd’s crowd work in the participatory sections (which, thank god, were few) springs to mind, as do Amy Bianchi’s varying roles – particularly as the lead in the whimsically country-style Tina Fey song. The character of Tori, played by Olivia Gosling, felt a little flat. There was no lack of excellent acting from Gosling with impeccable timing and entertaining delivery. Rather the character of Tori wasn’t quite so fleshed out as James (played by Jack Grey), whose story drove many of the scenes.
The love-hate relationship that all Londoners share with our city’s public transport system is woven throughout the play. From the first scene, right through the performance; the trials and tribulations of the underground system are both laughed and marvelled at. The lack of seating and the giving up of one’s seat for another were given a different, comedic light as polite insistence was succeeded by rage and the dread of becoming so old that you are deemed by society to be in need of a seat.
The sound design is very well done and perfectly complements each moment of the play. The intermittent roar of the tracks function, as in real life, like a kind of pre-watershed bleep. Tirades of abuse must be interpreted by the audiences through lip-reading and hand gestures, an undoubtedly effective performance of silence through which nothing is heard but everything is understood. The semi-regular announcements, which develop a narrative of their own, function as both take off and grounding off each unlikely encounter.
The musical moments of the play were the highlight, featuring Every Tube Station Song from the brilliant Jay Foreman, who’s comical yet informational YouTube videos on various aspects of London infrastructure clearly influenced at least some of the jokes and trivia.
Indeed, the simplistic set design plays its part too. The blue, barely cushioned seats look as though they may easily have been lifted directly out of a Piccadilly line train, even if they aren’t quite so faded as might be expected. The set also doesn’t quite reflect exactly how cramped the tube really gets. This obviously allows the actors plenty of space, which is very much required given the large amounts of physical comedy involved throughout. Apart from the space, one can really feel as though they are looking into a tube carriage. Even the adverts seen on the tube are given their own special moment, even if they’re not part of the actual set design. Essentially though, the set almost completely fades from one’s notice because of the seemingly never-ending host of different characters.
Cockfosters is undoubtedly an excellent surrealist comedy, the long list of characters masterfully acted by the small cast who bring humour and wit to an overlooked and under-loved part of Londoners’ everyday lives. The gentle mocking of a familiar and often frustrating institution is testament to how, as much as we all enjoy bemoaning the tube’s many flaws, we would be utterly lost without it and share at least a little love for it. If all the best bits of riding the tube, with all its bizarreness and strange stories, could be summed up into 60 minutes – this is it. I very much hope that Cockfosters rides again, without too much delay.
5 Stars!
About the author of this post
Michael Greaves is an undergraduate student reading War Studies at King’s College London. He dabbles in writing occasionally.
nothing in the rulebook 