Cracks needed in stiff upper lip to add interest

Heroes Without a Parachute, venues throughout Wales

CREDIT must go to writer Derek Webb for the loving and detailed research that has gone into creating Heroes Without a Parachute, which follows the lives of three young men who joined the fledgling Royal Flying Corps a couple of years before the outbreak of World War I.

The main body of the play centres around the post-war reminiscences of Robert Loraine and Arthur “Bosky” Drummond, with occasional interjections from a ghostly figure standing in the wings – the pilot James McCudden, who had died in a flying accident by the time the imagined conversation took place. Having him stand silently at the edge of the stage for most of the play, with little to say, was a surprising decision which, when coupled with a lack of narrative drive, became frustrating.

Part of the problem may well be the writer’s commitment to authenticity: the two main characters exhibited such a stiff upper lip that potentially compelling content – such as an admission of domestic violence – was not fully explored.

A stronger narrative was needed, and more directorial variety in the presentation of these men’s stories. Opportunities for greater character development and for the creation and exploration of tensions between the characters were missed, as was the chance to pad out the story of McCudden.

Some stumbling over lines did not help, nor did the problem (in this performance at the De Valance Pavilion in Tenby) of the bar staff talking through the whole of the first half.

I would have liked to see more cracks in their stiff outward personas, which would have created the opportunity for more layered, nuanced performances to complement the care and research that went into the piece.

Heroes Without a Parachute will visit the Grand Pavilion, Porthcawl, on October 10 and the Grand Theatre, Swansea, on November 15.