TWELVE ANGRY MEN – RICHMOND THEATRE

Twelve Angry Men is currently showing at Richmond Theatre and I would urge you to go. It’s an unbelievably powerful play with an evergreen themed story of humanity winning over bigotry and racism. It comes as no surprise that the 1957 film starring Henry Fonda is regarded as one of the greatest films ever made.  The play is considered a modern classic and remains a remarkably insightful play about morality and justice.

This is a legal drama written in 1954 by Reginald Rose who was born in Manhattan in 1920. The story was inspired by his own experience of being on jury service. The play is set entirely in one room, on a swelteringly hot day in a New York court house and it works very well as a theatre production. The twelve men of the jury are there to deliberate on the fate of a 16 year old boy accused of murdering his father. On the surface, it seems like a clear cut case, but there is one man in the room who refuses to vote “guilty” on the basis that he didn’t think he could prove “beyond reasonable doubt” that he was guilty.  There is tangible pressure knowing that a unanimous guilty verdict would give the boy the mandatory death sentence of being executed in the electric chair.

The architect, Juror 8, played by Jason Merrells doesn’t feel comfortable with the “lynch mob mentality” and wants to discuss the evidence carefully and methodically, much to the horror of some of the men, who are in a rush to get away. “Did he get a fair trial?” he asks…and he slowly and carefully begins to unravel some of the “concrete” evidence they have been faced with.

This is a microcosm of a nation all in one room. We see all the personality types emerging in heated conditions over the length of the play. We witness so many different types of men and characteristics: bigotry, hot tempers, meekness, those that are easily led, those that are analytical, those that are tough but principled, thoughtful and intelligent, hot headed and ultimately those that are racist.

In the original film, all the men are white. In this play 11 of the men are white and one is black.  They are all brilliant in their roles. Of course for it to be truly a modern classic there should ultimately be a more diverse group and if it wasn’t for the title, women could no doubt be successfully added (although maybe they’d show a little more humanity in the first place).

“It’s not easy to keep personal prejudice out of it” was a powerful line given at the end when the last man had to face his personal demons.  They had us all hooked on every word.  Definitely go and see it.  You will not be disappointed.

The lighting was brilliantly done by Chris Davey – especially when there was a storm outside.