Sixteen

It’s sixteen years since October was born into a squat. Now that everything’s legal, she’s desperate to celebrate. But the locals are suspicious; is this a party or a cover up?

“I wanted the old Dad. I’d heard of him, y’see. Sometimes I caught a glimpse. Bed time stories, tales full of hope, n justice, n people hugging. Said we were one. Called us self sufficient. Because we didn’t need other things. Because images lied, made sleepwalkers buy what would only make em want more. Said it was good we had no money, that there was grace in bein different. Because we were alone, alone together, and that was the beauty of us. His vision was so pure …I wish other people would see that.”

                                                         – extract from ‘Sixteen’

‘Sixteen’ was written at the National Theatre Studio and supported by the Gate theatre. It featured a distinguished and experienced professional cast, and also gave SPID youth theatre graduate Chloe Watkinson her first professional role. Supporting parts were played by other members of the youth company, challenging them with new responsibilities and introducing them to professional working methods as part of their continued, hands-on training at SPID.

Reviews

The Stage:

“Sixteen is an unforgettable social and theatrical experience. Would I recommend to it to everyone? Probably not, but being about a council estate, while being staged in an actual council estate, makes this a gritty and all too real experience for even the most broad-minded.

It’s the eve of October’s 16th birthday and the official opening of the Kensal Youth Club. Raised in an illegal squat by her failed actor father Mikey and failed chef aunt Beth, the squat has finally become legitimate, and trying to become the heart of the estate’s community.

However, there is a nasty undertone to the preparations, as the severe bruises all over October’s body take centre stage, tacitly and then later, loudly.

Paedophilia and incest are unpalatable topics society wants to bury and forget. And yet in Sixteen, we are forced to confront it as a possible reality between father and daughter, Mikey and October.

Tension mounts as October’s mother, Oleta, who abandoned her in the squat at birth, returns as a relatively high-flying journalist, with twisted messages for the nest she left behind.

SPID specialises in site-specific theatre and it’s a very powerful tool. By staging this play in the heart of a real-life council estate, when the Kensal Youth Club comes under attack from angry youths outside, the audience sat around the performance space on old sofas and mattresses, feel just as vulnerable as the characters. The environment forces the spectators to become part of the action and removes the usual comfort blanket of being a bystander.

Sixteen is violent, emotional and uncomfortable. All the things a play sometimes needs to be. You go to the theatre to be removed from your world and transported elsewhere. This really does that and makes you think about other parts of society. Mark Frost delivers a fantastic portrayal of Mikey, while Hoda Bentaher’s October is a heart-renderingly damaged performance.”

Independent on Sunday:

“On the night I attended, chino-clad punters – way out of their comfort zone – were having to argue their way into the show, past a bunch of hooded youths who loitered at the door, giving verbal cheek and violently slamming against the security shutters covering the windows. Rather wonderfully, that all became part of the show. And what a delight, being seated on old sofas and matresses on wheels which are shunted around wildly between scenes. I’d give that a whirl again.”

The Times:

“The script takes pains to juxtapose youthful idealism against the creeping spectre of middle aged failure…the acting is never less than competent and sometimes a good deal more. Bentaher’s sweet, strange naivety as October is touching. There is also notable work from Chloe Watkinson, a teenager with showbiz aspirations, and Jean Marie Coffey as a fretful aunt for whom disappointment has become a way of life.”

Fringe Review:

“This valiant attempt by SPID to look at an edge of society that is rarely explored in theatre and actually set it on a real council estate is interesting and well worth seeing.”