Lessons On Revolution ★★★★

Two flatmates, Gabe Uboldi and Sam Rees (both playing themselves and also the show’s writers) try to establish what radical change means today through the story of a protest staged in 1968 by students at the London School of Economics. The big question explored here is: In this new age of inequality and injustice, can we seek hope from the voices of the past?

The show’s set-up, catwalk style with the audience at either side of the room, allows the two performers to prowl up and down the space, and gifts proceedings a certain pace and intensity. Both trade the narrative between them, rarely taking more than a few lines at a time. Their contrasting styles, Uboldi giving off charming Italian hipster vibes, Rees more of a strident student-union president type, could have been jarring but they make for an engaging double act. This is especially so when they relate the story back to the characters’ own lived experiences.

Frequent audience participation is an unexpected twist to progressing the narrative, but it is deftly handled, largely avoiding the squirming such antics can sometimes induce. Indeed, it actually allows the performers to deliver some well-timed injections of humour. Despite the dark subject matter, levity is in generous supply throughout.