Simon Ward reviews Bangers at the Arcola Theatre

Written by Danusia Samal, who also co-stars, this is a mash-up of a club night where composer and sound designer Duramaney Kamara’s tunes mixed with some classics keep the dancefloor humming and a touching exploration of two young people – Aria (Samal) and Clef (Jim Caesar) as they make halting first steps, and mis-steps, into adult life. All overseen by chorus-cum-surrogate mother DJ played by Tanya-Loretta Dee with a winning mixture of warmth, encouragement and no-nonsense steel.

Set in the distant past of the early Noughties it’s clear that for many in the audience this is a nostalgic trip back to hedonistic days of call and response raving, with no thoughts then of the myriad problems facing the world in the mid-Twenties. Older audience members (such as your reviewer) can readily make the adjustment to their own music-filled days of irresponsible pleasure-seeking and join in. One thing that is particular to the Noughties setting, though, is the young people’s engagement with making music, as well as consuming it. Whereas earlier generations had to somehow get a band together to make their own sounds, in the Noughties you could do it, and do it well, in your own bedroom. This could mean a deeper connection to the music and could even lead to the possibility of an escape from the confines of a life which may not need to be defined by school grades and university admissions.

But the magical, escapist world of music is still mixed up with the messy everyday world of people and real life problems. Navigating the meanings of friendship, love and sex is as complicated as ever when feelings are not reciprocated, relationships misunderstood or power is abused. In highly charged language, mixing in verse, rap and song among the dialogue, Samal has produced a play of real power, offering no easy answers. She and Caesar play mulitple roles with effortless aplomb (helped by occasional words of encouragement from the DJ) and the denouement of the story had me gasping. This elevates it far above the nostalgic jukebox musical you might have expected, although there is a little bit of that in the joyous final moments.

The play invites you to reflect on the songs that shaped your life, the ones you were listening to when music was the only thing that could make sense of life, and bring you to a place where you felt safe and understood. Even if these songs or this genre of music is not yours, the questions are universal: Is a great song simply great, or did you only think so because of who and where you were when you heard it? And can you redeem a song that you loved if it gets tainted in your mind by heartbreak or embarrassment or shame? I think Samal is saying that you can, and you should, ‘reclaim the bangers!’ The perfect theme for a trip to Dalston.

Bangers runs until 10th August at the Arcola Theatre, 24 Ashwin Street, London E8 3DL