Ron's rages are sincere and — according to his wife — healthily cathartic. But can these splenetic outbursts loosen the grip of capitalism at its most monstrous?
Sure-footed sex and violence
PETER MASON is impressed by the performances in Stephen Berkoff's visceral depiction of the East End family from hell
ANGUS REID considers the power of the podcast as a vehicle for consensus building in opposition to mainstream media narratives
GLENN FOSBRAEY recommends a biography worth reading for both existing George Michael fans and those yet to be converted
FRANCIS DEVINE introduces a new collection of essays that draws on Pease McKenna’s example to indicate future paths for the movement
KEVIN DONNELLY and MARIA DUARTE review Shoot the People, The Last One For The Road, Rosebush Pruning, and Moana
JAMES WALSH recommends an exceptional documentary about the experience of Western doctors in Gaza
East
King’s Head Theatre, London
PRETTY early on in any Steven Berkoff play, you’re going to have to decide whether to roll with it and enjoy the chaos or to walk out and find some peace and quiet.
Fortunately, the acting excellence of this production of his 1975 offering East provides absolutely no incentive for an early departure.
Whatever the flaws in the play itself — a chopping, changing, roller coaster tale of sex, violence and daily drudgery in a London family whose members simultaneously wallow in and rage against the disappointments of their lives — the collective quality of the cast helps us focus on its occasionally spellbinding attributes.
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