PARATROOPERS IS A FRENETIC TRIUMPH AND CAUTIONARY TALE THAT SHOULDN’T BE IGNORED

By Madeleine Anderson ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Performed in a theatre at the heart of Keir Starmer’s constituency, Paratroopers is a comic but clear criticism of the internal workings of the Labour party and the everyday corruptions that shadow local politics.

The play, written by Daniel Patten and Sol Alberman, follows from the death of much-loved MP Francis ‘Frankie’ Fletcher, whose passing sees two ruthless wanna-be politicians competing for the Labour candidacy in the now-empty seat.

It begins with the party hopefuls Mackenzie Steele (Jack Medlin) and Connor Banks (Daniel Patten) gathering at a community arts centre, located in the fictional Northern post-industrial town of ‘Cackby’.

The production uses a minimalist set and prop design that starts with Banks and Steele standing at two microphones with the candidate profiles of the rivals projected onto the wall behind. When audiences arrive, Banks and Steel are already interacting, with the pair pacing around the empty stage.

Having both grown up in Cackby and studied at Oxford University Steele and Banks are cut from the same educational elite, but each represent opposing wings of the Labour party.

Both actors adeptly embody their roles, with Patten performing a shifty and awkward Banks with an ease that sees the audience feel cringed and charmed in equal measure.

Steele is a smoother operator, dressed in a grey checked suit which (as Banks tells him) looks like something from Topman. He goes on to endure a decline so massive, including a hallucinatory episode, that audiences are left feeling sympathy for this otherwise wince-making political operative.

Comic moments, including a delirious dance break and surreal depiction of the two actors as armoured knights, are always matched with a very real political message. In fact, the play drew inspiration from a case of electoral fraud in the constituency of Croydon East last year.

The auditory references to familiar internet memes place the fictional world of Cackby in a familiar reality, with warped clips (including Kamala Harris’ ‘coconut tree’ speech) being blared out of loudspeakers which add to a hysteria which is both comically distorted and alarmingly real.

The candidates also use Instagram to promote their political efforts, with the performers regularly posting updates from Cackby. Like the insightful characterisation of both men, the team’s clever use of social media also helps blur the lines between fiction and reality, including awkward ‘millennial pauses’ and tired political catchphrases in many of the posts.

More relevant than ever, Paratroopers is a frenetic triumph and cautionary tale that shouldn’t be ignored.

Paratroopers ran from 22nd to 23rd Match at The Lion & Unicorn Theatre in London. It is returning to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival from July 31st to August 24th.

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Photo Credit: Ella Muir

CREDITS

Starring: Daniel Patten and Jack Medlin
Written by: Daniel Patten and Sol Alberman
Directed by: Callan Ridgewell
Produced by: Poppy Maxwell
Assistant Director: Elsa Pahl

You can keep up to date with Banks and Steele on Instagram