Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 9/10

Cast: Mutty Burman, Michael Horsley, Joe Speare, Zain Salim, DJ Spykatcha.

There is a train of thought that there are no new stories to tell in theatre, that the classics, modern, and those written in the depths of time, are the crowning glories of the craft and cannot be improved upon, or at least changed to give a new sense of direction to the audience’s thoughts, to their pleasure and enjoyment, in the way they perceive the characters laid down. ]

Of course, train of thought is quite often derailed, and that is the point, to have pre-conceptions is to deny that life can change, that the path is set in stone and one that cannot be challenged; in that respect, life is not a single road, many paths and different viewpoints must be experienced in order to appreciate all those around you. It is a view in art that must be maintained and in the Boisterous Theatre Company and Maurice Bessman’s new version of John Godber’s admired and much-loved Bouncers, change is not just radical or innovative, it is a wonderful revolution.

The men and women who guard the doors to night time hedonism, flavour and a kind of illuminated sanctuary are those to whom suffer verbal abuse, they block the way to the unrespectable, they close ranks on the vile, but they too are human beings, and whilst the ego driven, often alcohol fuelled, customers and night life revellers may often have issues with them, who is too say that they also don’t feel the beat, that they dance to a tune of the artistic pulse.

It is a beat that is enormously satisfying in this new version of Bouncers, it is a pulse that rightly has the audience on their feet, as the bouncer’s Judd, Les, Lucky Eric and Ralph take to the stage and bring a distinctive brilliance to the party-goer’s evening.

Revolution is a battle hard fought, but when you see it in action it is mesmerising, it is the battle without spilling blood, but also one that is steeped in sweat and tears, revolution that is aided by a cast on top form and ones truly grit their teeth and graft from start to finish to prove that a new spin can be put on even the most incredibly thoughtful and jaw achingly funny of plays.

With Mutty Burman, Michael Horsley, Joe Speare and Zain Salim performing with absolute care and diligence in tier respective roles, Bouncers is passionate, positive and foaming with effervescence and animated cool; a true honour to witness in action.

Ian D. Hall