‘That’s Where I Want To Live The Rest Of My Life — A Warm Place With No Memory’ – The Shawshank Redemption, Orchard Theatre, Dartford. 11.04.23

What could be better than a night out watching the nation’s (and my own) favourite film on stage? Nothing, in my opinion, so I happily trotted up to The Orchard Theatre in Dartford last night to see The Shawshank Redemption.

Many of you will be familiar with the film if not the book, but in case you do not know the story, here’s the bio taken from the Orchard’s website:

Despite protests of his innocence, Andy Dufresne is handed a double life sentence for the brutal murders of his wife and her lover. Incarcerated in the notorious Shawshank facility, he quickly learns that no one can survive alone.

Andy strikes up an unlikely friendship with the prison fixer Red, and things start to take a slight turn for the better. However, when Warden Stammas decides to bully Andy into subservience and exploit his talents for accountancy, a desperate plan is quietly hatched…

Based on Stephen King’s 1982 novella Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption, this thrilling stage production examines desperation, injustice, friendship and hope behind the claustrophobic bars of a maximum-security facility. The 1984 feature film starred Tim Robbins and Morgan Freeman and was nominated for seven Academy Awards.

Given the success and popularity of the film, I sat down feeling slightly nervous for the cast. Could they pull this off? But thankfully, I needn’t be. Who could possibly imitate the dulcet tones of Morgan Freeman as narrator and one of the main characters Ellis ‘Red’ Redding? Ben Onwukwe absolutely could; for me he was easily the star of the show. He has a beautifully warm and inviting tone that brings you into the scenes with the actors, making the audience part of the highs and lows of prison life at the Shank.

He also brings a good deal of comedy to the role, at the appropriate moments to lift the mood, such as when Andy reveals how much money he has hidden on the outside. Or when Andy asks him ‘Do you think you’ll ever get out of here, Red?’ and he replies enthusiastically ‘Sure I will! When I’ve got a long white beard and just about three marbles left rattling around up there’ (indicating to his head).

The other side of our duo is Joe Absolom – best known for his role as Al Large in Doc Martin – playing Andy Dufresne. His is a role of quiet determination, which he does well. He has all the mannerisms/characteristics of his character – quiet, bookish, stubborn. I found his portrayal of any emotions quite unemotional, but that is fairly in keeping with the character too. I was perhaps less convinced by his American accent but that was a minor detail.

Although the focus is on these two for the majority of the play, the rest of the cast are important in bringing the prison atmosphere to life. Joe Reisig gives a convincing performance as one of the more brutal ‘Screws’ (guards), whilst Mark Heenehan makes a very pompous, self-righteous Warden Stammas. My favourite character from the film translated into the play – Kenneth Jay did a fantastic job as the veteran inmate Brooksie, the librarian who’s been there so long he doesn’t know how to acclimatise to life on the outside.

Brooksie gives us one of our saddest moments, when his fellow inmates find out he passed away shortly after leaving the prison, unable to cope with the pace, and without his friends and his books.

Perhaps surprisingly, the moment that moved me to tears was Ben Onwukwe’s monologue at the end, where he reads out a letter from Andy before he goes searching for his friend. It was delivered so expressively that the raw emotion of it seeped into the audience.

I couldn’t possibly leave this review without giving credit to the amazing creative team behind the staging. I was genuinely curious as to how they would portray the different areas of the prison and then the end scene where Red and Andy reunite outside. Cleverly, is the answer! Whilst the prison walls remain present throughout the show, different elements of staging and backdrops are dropped down to give us Andy’s cell, the warden’s office and the library. But my favourite staging moment for sure is the end scene, where the prison splits apart and the walls move away to show a beautiful beach, where Andy is waiting for his friend. It honestly gave me chills, as it absolutely encapsulated freedom.

The Shawshank Redemption on stage is thoroughly absorbing; I was engrossed from minute one. The cast face no small task in bringing such a popular film to life, and they all delivered a fantastic performance.

The Shawshank Redemption is on at the Orchard Theatre in Dartford until Saturday 15 April, and if you have the time to go see it; I promise you won’t regret it. Tickets can be purchased here.