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An important examination of young offenders and why nothing is as black and white as too many people seem to believe. All held together by a stunning performance from Adam Halcro. Summary
Rating
Good
Sessions presents us with a simple set up. George is a young offender, David his no nonsense case worker. George has just been found guilty of GBH and sentenced to community service along with mandatory counselling with David. Session by session we watch as George begins to trust David and open up to him, until eventually the trauma that is at the heart of his broken life is brought to the surface, giving reason for so much that has gone before.
Adam Halcro absolutely owns the stage as George, the youth struggling with life and trying to pretend he doesn’t care about much more than football and getting high. His nervous energy as he fidgets and picks at his hands, his rough delivery, his scene by scene change as he moves from cocky to trusting and finally vulnerable is a brilliant piece of acting that makes Sessions a fascinating watch.
Sam Bates, both writer and director, obviously contributes more than his fair share to creating such a compelling character, full of anger, mistrust and a need for validation. But for everything that is good about George, the same cannot be said about David. Naytanael Israel is hamstrung by being given a character who just feels less believable, a disappointing parody of a youth social worker. An ex-offender, a former drug dealer with a dead brother and a friend beaten up for being different, it just feels like Bates has tried to throw in every character trait to make David the perfect foil for George.
Clearly the aim is to show us that everyone can turn their life around and do good – that David was once just like George. The problem is it feels forced and unnecessary. There’s just no need to overdo the message that the play wants to deliver in the way it currently does. I’d argue that David could be completely rewritten, and Sessions would be a better play for it, putting the spotlight even more brightly upon George.
Israel’s delivery doesn’t help, not quite gelling with Halcro’s. His lines feel much more as if they’re being read from the script; a slight pause follows every time Halcro ends, so not allowing the conversations to flow as freely as they should. This, though, is something that you’d hope would be ironed out with more performances. Similarly, you’d hope for the same with the lighting cues that seemed to be missed on one too many occasions.
Even with such quibbles about one of the two characters, there is still plenty in the script to drive things along and this leaves Sessions feeling as if it has lots to say. Squeezed into sixty minutes, it still gives the sense that George’s progression isn’t easily found, as if it really has happened over months and months. Session by session there are subtle changes that demonstrate Bates’ well considered writing and directing. Especially pleasing is the physical contact between the pair; at their first meeting a handshake is totally refused by George when offered, yet come the harrowing final scene you almost expect the pair to hug.
Youth crime is a topic that needs much more nuanced conversations. Even with the concerns about one half of its characters, this play still delivers a vital message that young offenders are never as simple as good or bad, but rather there is always a reason behind their behaviour. With a rewrite to draw out its strengths Sessions could deliver that message even more forcefully. That message as it currently is, along with Halcro’s incredible performance, still certainly leave an imprint come the end.
Written and directed by: Sam Bates
Light and sound design by: Finlay Murray
Produced and dramaturgy by: Stacey Cullen
Music by: Phillip Brown
Produced by: Working Progress Collective
Sessions plays at Lion and Unicorn Theatre until 1 June. Further information and bookings can be found here.
