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The premise of Mohamed-Zain Dada's play is simple enough. Three strangers who have been guilty of reckless driving find themselves thrown together in a class which, in lieu of them losing their drivers' licences, is supposed to help them deal with their anger issues. But, as the instructor takes this recalcitrant threesome through a series of exercises such as role playing, assumption awareness and guided meditation, they begin to question not only themselves, but also their teacher's behaviour and his real motivations. And, the questions raised do not stop here. The issues addressed become much larger than simply how to deal with road rage. When, if ever, is anger an appropriate response to perceived bad behaviour, abuse or even bigotry? On the journey through life how should one handle the people perceived as impeding the achievement of one's goals? The play raises some big questions while packaging these musings in a tension-filled, little drama that has some nice comic elements. Shazia Nicholls as the foolish and snobbish entrepreneur is absolutely hilarious. Sabrina Sandhu, as the overworked nurse, creates a completely recognisable and identifiable character, and Arian Nik nicely takes his portrayal of the delivery driver, Samir, beyond a simple stereotype. However, the show depends very much on the portrayal of their instructor, Abz. While Nikesh Patel gets it mostly right, the balance between prissy pedant and genuine concern doesn't always work. Perhaps, the playwright might need to flesh out this character a little more to establish him as the earnest, but flawed, moral centre of the play. The staging of Speed is also less than satisfactory. It often seems as if it were being directed for a proscenium arch presentation, rather than for the current thrust stage. Some of the rather awkward sightlines can be quite distracting. Caveats aside, however, this is a funny and insightful work that has a lot to say and generally says it very well.
Rated: ★★★★
Reviewhved by J.C.
Photo by Richard Lakos
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