Review: Michael Rosen: Getting Through It, The Arts at St George’s

In the hushed sanctuary of St George’s, Michael Rosen climbs onto a chair, papers in hand, with the audience’s applause only subsiding at his gentle request. “I will tell you this story because telling it helps me,” he begins; words that set the tone for an evening that defies traditional theatrical categorisation yet achieves something perhaps more meaningful.

What Rosen offers isn’t a classic performance but a testimony, delivered in two distinct parts. The first recounts his journey through grief following his son Eddie’s death from meningitis; the second chronicles his own COVID-induced coma and recovery. Familiar to readers of his Sad Book and Many Different Kinds of Love, these narratives gain new power in Rosen’s physical presence and voice — the medium through which generations have encountered his children’s poetry.

The church setting proves remarkably appropriate for what amounts to a secular sermon, with subtle references to both Christianity and Rosen’s Jewish heritage adding contemplative layers without undermining the universal themes. This architectural sanctity mirrors the sacred act occurring within, bearing witness to suffering and restoration.

Rosen’s account of grief is delivered with devastating clarity – the search for support, inevitable self-blame, dreams where loss manifests unexpectedly. Yet his most profound insight emerges with elegant simplicity: “Grief is regretting that things changed: but things are always changing. Even in grief, I am part of all things becoming different.” These words offer both acknowledgement of pain and permission to continue living.

The second half performs a remarkable balancing act between horror and humour. When Rosen mentions his oxygen level plummeting to 58 on the oximeter, an audience member gasps audibly. Moments later, his comparison of digesting blood clots to “eating scabs” elicits surprised laughter. This emotional whiplash feels authentic precisely because it mirrors how we actually experience trauma — not as steady states but as oscillation between darkness and unexpected levity.

What elevates the evening beyond mere catharsis is Rosen’s ability to weave a circular narrative where explorations of love inevitably return to grief, while navigations of grief uncover new capacities for love. The vignettes, drawn from hospital journals, emails, and memories, collectively form a deeply human exploration that refuses easy sentimentality or pat conclusions.

The simplicity of presentation — just a man, his words, and water on a small table — removes all barriers between storyteller and listener. There is no artifice here, no gimmicks, only authentic communion among an audience consisting partially of those who grew up with Rosen’s children’s books and who now bring their own children to his readings. Getting Through It emerges as both a testament to resilience and a profound love letter to parents, children, friends and all caregivers – from medical professionals to family members, acknowledging the vital web of support that sustains us through our darkest moments. In sharing how storytelling helped him survive, Rosen offers the same gift to his audience: not solutions, but companionship in the universal human journey of loss and regeneration.

Written & Performed by: Michael Rosen

Getting Through It has finished its run at The Arts at St George’s and is now on a UK tour