‘Never Let Me Go’ is a speculative play that tells an amazing story. ‘Kathy’ is introduced as an optimistic female care worker in a mysterious hospital, trying to cheer up a stubborn patient. The play’s dialogue and circumstances slowly and ambiguously reveal the true nature of this speculative world. The characters give details away slowly but surely, discussing their roles as ‘caretakers’ and ‘donors’ as if that’s all that defines them. Their strange sense of shared identity, their sheltered environment and the euphemisms used to describe them serve as very intriguing clues for the audience. The play encourages intelligent interpretation of these social complexities to piece together its true premise.
This slow unraveling of the story makes it deeply engaging. When the full premise is finally revealed, it is both powerful and ethically provocative. The main characters belong to a lesser class—not defined by race or physical traits, but by where they come from. While they are given certain luxuries, society ultimately controls their purpose, determining their fates and shortening their lives.
The play shifts between two primary settings: Kathy’s childhood school, Hailsham, and the hospitals where she works as an adult. The set design for both is excellent, evoking familiar spaces in a version of England that closely mirrors our own. This familiarity heightens the shock of the play’s premise when it comes to light.
Ambient lighting and sound effects play a massive role in the play’s inspired approach to scene transitions. Every scene abruptly ends with the beginning line from the next scene, before the actors rush to take their new positions, and light and sound change to indicate the change in environment. It is a very efficient way to keep momentum between scenes while remaining smooth.
Hailsham is perhaps the best setting of the play. It allows the audience to perceive this enigmatic, privative world through the eyes of the Hailsham students, who are equally in the dark. They are ignorant of their own place in the world, knowing the life that awaits them but failing to understand what it truly means for them. The simplicity and studious culture of Hailsham does nothing to prepare them for a stark society which looks down on them and doesn’t care about their studies. This tension is portrayed very well in the narrative but is also an excellent analogy for real-life issues of education. ‘Never Let Me Go’ begs the question, to what extent are the rigours of school just a performance, keeping students in the dark as to the grim reality of life?
The climax of the play deals with death in a very affecting way. Kathy and her friends are stuck with the morbid task of how to make the last moments of their lives special before they take their early steps towards death. They think about the hopes and dreams they thought they moved on from, clinging to love and small fragments of nostalgia. This depiction of death is honest and plaintive, expertly rounding out the themes of the play.
The only drawback lies in the middle portion of the play. The cottage setting between the school and the end continues Kathy’s basic coming-of-age story into her teen years. It depicts the teenagers’ adolescence and growing sexuality entertainingly, but much of it feels unnecessary to the essential themes of the play. A couple of characters are introduced who have little to no impact on the story. Though this segment includes some important information, it could have been shortened to streamline the play’s runtime.
‘Never Let Me Go’
By Suzanne Heathcote
Directed by Christopher Haydon
Set and Costume Designer: Tom Piper
Cast includes Amelie Abbott, Susan Aderin, Matilda Bailes, Nell Barlow, Maximus Evans, Angus Imrie, Princess Khumalo, Emilie Patry and Tristan Waterson
Until 12th October
Running Time: 2hrs 40mins including interval