The 99%

On her birthday Justine Brooks went along to stage@leeds, at the University of Leeds, to see what performance students get up to. Here she reviews The 99%; a Performance Project devised by level three students studying at the School of Performance and Cultural Industries.

The last time I went to see a student play was, funnily enough, when I was a student, which frankly, was quite a few years ago. To give some sort of indication of the length of time that has passed since I galivanted around in purple 501s and adidas trainers, these days I’m more likely to be watching primary school nativity plays. 

 Back in the day, when I watched student plays, it was because my friends were in the play and I wanted to support them – bums on seats and all that. So I have to admit to having had certain reservations after accepting an invitation to see The 99% – a play at Leeds University Theatre by final year students studying in the School of Performance and Cultural Industries. My reservations were: 1) I didn’t know anyone in the cast and 2) I would have to write about the production afterwards. 

 I’m showing my age again – my how things have changed. For a start, the theatre itself is really quite impressive – modern, spacious, wired for sound, light and all things digital (I did feel it lacked a bar, or even a drinks machine, but then again, this is an educational establishment and I believe that there is in fact a bar just around the corner). 

 The play – or to be precise – ‘performance project’ (see, it almost certainly wouldn’t have been called a ‘project’ in my day) started almost punctually, a very nicely choreographed movement piece set the scene and things began well with two very strong narrators. 

 As I settled into my (rather uncomfortably hard – see my previous note about educational establishment) chair, I realised that The 99%, the performance project, was turning out to be very much in the infotainment vein, and I mean that in a good way. We, the audience, just sat back in our seats and the origins of the Arab Spring were explained to us, the self immolation of Mohamed Boazizi, the power and abuse of dictators around the region and salvation’s appearance in the form of crowds – people coming together to make a difference. 

 Crowds are in fact what the play is about. Their psychology, their politic, their dynamic, their positives (see Arab Spring), their negatives (the riotous behaviour surrounding the launch of Primark on Oxford Street in 2007 or indeed the more recent London riots). It’s also about the masses (ie 99% of the population) versus the privileged few (the 1%) who control 40% of the world’s wealth. 

 And really, The 99% seemed to me to be something of a call to action. To be fair, protesting against the poll tax and occupying university buildings this was not (yes, here another clue to my own antiquity). Was this some new form of agitprop? Encouraging us to all go out and be militant, join the crowd, make a difference? Oh hell I hope so. ‘Well spoken young people of Headingley! Come together to protest against student fees!’ Whoops. Too late. Another strike against the 99%. 

 And to the technicalities. The 99% was tightly produced and choreographed. The stage was used well and the acting – and this is what really impressed me the most – was very very strong. I don’t wish to let the side down (my own aged side, that is), but I also don’t remember such all round professionalism in my day. In The 99%, some of the performers were inevitably stronger than others, but that’s as far as it goes in terms of criticism. No-one let the side down. Everything went like clockwork. And I would have no reservations about encouraging anyone to go and see any other performances by this very committed and talented group of young people. 

The second in a series of four Performance Projects, Into the Dark, shows this week (5-8th December) stage@leeds. You can book tickets here or contact the box office on 0113 343 8730.