Bashment
Theatre Royal, Stratford East, London E15
JJ loves everything about black culture. Only trouble is, he's white and gay. He knows the lyrics to his beloved dance-hall reggae are homophobic, but surely the music itself is innocent?
When he takes his bohemian boyfriend, Orlando, to a DJ-ing competition in a black club, Orlando is beaten up by a group of rappers (three black, one white). Can JJ forgive himself and avoid tipping over into racism?
Bashment, by Rikki Beadle-Blair, who wrote the BBC film, Stonewall, is provocative and very timely. No one is let off the hook as he tries to unravel straight black men's fear of 'the other'. There's an extraordinary moment when rapper Eggy admits: 'Forget this men loving men bullshit. Men getting fucked... too close to the situation a nigga's living.'
For a polemical play where violence is always close to the edge, the writing is often witty and tender. There are some great relationships, especially JJ and Orlando (which turns from blissed-out sexual to carer and child).
With such an ambitious piece, of course, Beadle-Blair over-eggs it (perhaps we didn't need a subplot about transvestism). At times, the plot is a mess and, in his desire to be fair, Beadle-Blair comes up with an unconvincing reconciliation.
But this is a brave play. It may not transfer to the West End like the feelgood Big Life, but it's arguably more important.
