Set against the backdrop of the Thatcher era and the Falklands War, ‘Meat’ brings us the tale of a butcher, his family and their requisite secrets. The play is woven and the action orchestrated by an omniscient type devil character by the name of Jack Black. Using voiceless musical interludes, and assisted by other characters with whom he is connected, Black effectively comperes the play. This approach is a little confusing to start with, indeed you would be forgiven for thinking you had entered the wrong venue at the start, but the device soon becomes clear.
The play highlights ideas and ideals of women, their changing roles in Thatcherite Britain and, of course, their interaction with men. Various sexual and maternal roles, and the effect they have on the male characters, are investigated and this inevitably leads to an exploration of the parallels and relations amid money, sex, power, temptation and the family bond.
Solid and pleasant, if perhaps slightly average, performances are given by all, but it’s the cheeky and charming Mr. Black that seems to shine through. Unfortunately, having the onus on the devil/mysterious-man-from-the-past that is Jack Black somehow mars the main thrust of the play, taking away from the characters’ own choices, allowing an easy out for their behaviour and decreasing the impact of their circumstances upon those choices. Together with the cringingly cheesy Eighties music that accompanies the each interlude and the amateur magic of the opening, the play is reduced from an overall enjoyable experience, to a pedestrian one with several worthy moments.
3/5
Brid-Aine Conway
