There are few topical concerns that don’t surface in this intriguing second play by Amy Ng: sexual predatoriness, ethnic diversity, gender inequality and university admission procedures are all thrown into the mix. But, while it’s good to find a play that tackles big issues, there is a faint air, in a highly compressed 85-minute piece, of boxes being systematically ticked.
The action starts with Angela, a 17-year-old violinist from Hong Kong, applying for a music scholarship to a prestigious Ivy League university. Birch, the acting dean of admissions who has never achieved pay parity and a top post because of her gender, is sceptical and senses something troubled about Angela. Mercy, Birch’s black British aide and a political activist, takes up Angela’s cause especially when she discovers that the student is being penalised for having earlier brought unproven charges of rape against a teacher. Meanwhile Ben, an imported diversity expert, is wary of accepting Angela despite her exceptional talent.
Ng argues, with conviction, that self-acceptance is ultimately more important than recognition by elite academic institutions. She also writes with sympathy and understanding about the stigma and trauma that accompanies accusations, however justified, of sexual assault. For good measure, Ng also deploys Bach’s St Matthew Passion to reinforce Angela’s need for resolution to her personal problems. But the sole male character, Ben, is such a smarmy creep that he instantly arouses one’s suspicions, and the play, with its references to Black Lives Matter and America First, is simply too short to properly address all the topics raised.
Anna Ledwich’s production, played on a traverse stage in the Downstairs space, is crisp and clear, and the four actors all do a good job. Jennifer Leong as the psychologically damaged Angela, Debbie Korley as the militant Mercy, Teresa Banham as the unfulfilled Birch and Bo Poraj as the campus star fill out the characters Ng has created. I’d just urge Ng next time round to give her subject room to breathe and realise that there is no unwritten rule that says plays have to be confined to a single act.
• At Hampstead theatre, London, until 7 April. Box office: 020-7722 9301.
