Twelve Angry Men Review!

May 13, 2015 by Pete Thorn

Twelve Angry Men, but not in the audience!

There appeared to be unanimous approval from those we spoke to upon leaving the Palace Theatre after seeing Bill Kenwright’s touring production of this classic Reginald Rose’s drama which started life as a fifties TV play before becoming famous as a film later in the same decade.

The storyline, brilliantly played out, follows the jury as they leave this New York court room to decide whether a black 16 year old is guilty of the murder of his father and hence may face the death penalty.

Whilst this seems an open and shut case, one juror has nagging doubts as to a hasty condemnation although the other 11 are happy for a quick resolution, finding him immediately guilty. Simply referred to as juror number 8, convincingly played by Jason Merrells known for his parts in Casualty, Emmerdale, Waterloo Road and many other TV productions as well as Theatre appearances, it dawns upon him that the outcome of this case will depend upon the assumptions and prejudices of his fellow jurors. He remains unsure but firm whist the others question the fact as to how he could possibly have any doubt.

Gradually the personalities and motives of the various jurors get exposed as the facts are presented one by one and re-examined from a different perspective. Slowly the layers are peeled away and steadily votes move from guilty to not guilty for very different reasons.

The play is thoroughly absorbing and as the tables gradually turn so does the table around which the jurors are sitting without you hardly noticing. Clever stuff! There are some very strong performances with a most outstanding one from Juror number 3, Andrew Lancel whose final stand as to his position is most compelling. Denis Lill as Juror 10 and Robert Duncan as Juror 4 give very believable performances although there is not a weak link in the cast.

The tension in this play lasts until the end and it is a most enjoyable experience. Well worth a visit.

Twelve Angry Men is showing at the Palace Theatre Monday 11th to Saturday 16th May 2015