Review: ROOST, Oran Mor

Roost is a new play written by Laurie Motherwell and directed by Katherine Nesbitt. 

Bingo (Conor MacLeod) is waiting for his assessment from social work. He was looking after his six-year-old daughter Jen and left her alone in the flat while he went outside to tend to his birds. Jen's mother has declared him neglectful and Hana (Hannah Yahya Hassan) has arrived from social services to carry out the assessment.

Bingo has a dookit round the back of his high-rise flat. He takes care of pigeons (doos) and has done since he was young. He feeds the birds, keeps them free of disease and they respond to his call. Hana is initially scared of the doos but after spending some time with Bingo, admits that her father uses to keep pigeons in Syria and she helped tend to them. Bingo views this as a chance to bond.

MacLeod is fantastic as Bingo. He's a man that cares deeply, both about his daughter and his doos (though one is a little more evident than the other initially). Hana struggles to remain professional after connecting with her service user on such a personal level. Motherwell's script is funny and unpredictable with complex and likeable characters. 

Photo credit: Tommy Ga-Ken Wan

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