Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *

Cast: Elliot Barnes-Worrell, Doreene Blackstock, Curtis Cole, Dominic Gately, Savannah Gordon-Liburd, Luke James, Jack McMullen, Richard Pepple, Alix Ross, Sean Sagar.

Alan Sillitoe’s The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner was written in the dying days of National Service in Great Britain; this coupled with the thought of young offenders’ prisons which became a one-stop shop for hope being abandoned may have been on a lot of people’s minds when the national riots of 2011 scarred and divided the nation.

What to do with the young that took part in them provided much debate in every home throughout the country, no matter what was the final punishment; it was either not enough or too much depending on your point of view.

Roy Williams’ stage adaptation of Alan Sillitoe’s work brings the classic look at the system that locked young offenders away and drops it smack into the middle of the biggest riots seen in Britain for a generation. The tension between two differing points of view is highlighted by the conflict that Colin Smith, portrayed by the superb Elliot Barnes-Worrell and all that stands between him and the freedom he craves is stifling, somehow unbearably so as he sees his world descend into bitterness and anger.

The causes of such destruction in a young person’s life are probably never really explained until it’s too late to change their life. Colin on the other hand is able to find some salvation from the streets and authority that he finds on both sides of his life.

To be confident enough to hold the attention of an entire audience whilst performing the simulation of long distance running via a treadmill is nothing short of awe-inspiring. Elliot Barnes-Worrell somehow gave his all, and then some more in a part that he shone outstandingly in. Alongside Mr. Barnes-Worrell was a cast that made the production come alive in such a way that may have been lost in another time and with less well versed cast who were able to convey the dangers of conforming to either side and not being your own person.

The confrontation between Colin and his recently widowed mother, played with great appeal by Doreene Blackstock on one hand and the guard allegedly on his side convincing him to run were scenes of utter suffering but with the knowledge this was a man who would survive anything by being honest to himself.

The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner should be required viewing by all. It leaves you breathless.

Ian D. Hall