Theatre review: Gunshot Medley

Venue 13 (Venue 13)

***

Betty, like a benevolent Lady Macbeth, just cannot scrub the sullied earth clean enough. The happy-go-lucky Alvis enthusiastically shares what he has learned of hip-hop and R&B culture and uncovers trophies from the 21st century which are seemingly frivolous but had tragic significance in the real-life fates of Martin and Rice.

The simmering, raging, committed George is ripe for politicisation and returns from his ghostly wanderings rigged out in the leather uniform of the Black Panthers.

Songs of sorrow and struggle float to them on the wind courtesy of a live soundtrack of gospel, bluegrass and Appalachian folk played on guitar, viola and beautifully sung by Dionna Michelle Daniel – though all the cast have rich singing voices.

Daniel also wrote the play, as an angry but poetic vehicle to explore how much or how little has changed from the slave lynchings of the 19th century to the current epidemic of US shootings which have inspired the Black Lives Matter movement.

Until 26 August. Today 2:45pm.