Review: NEW VIEWS FESTIVAL 2024, National Theatre

Newness was certainly in the air on 5 July 2024. On one side of the Thames, in 10 Downing Street, a new government was forming; on the other, at The National Theatre, new writing was forming. Both come into hostile, broken environments, politics and culture battered recently, but both have energy, talent and goodwill to spur them on. The next five years will tell us much about the future for the Arts in the UK.

The New Views competition is run annually by The National Theatre to uncover new young playwrights. Working with teachers, 14-19 year olds submit scripts, receive mentoring and, for the winner, see their play produced in a staged reading on the Southbank. This year, over 90 schools and colleges submitted 500 plays and, after a meticulous process of longlisting (100) and shortlisting (nine), a winner, or, rather, two winners this year, were chosen. BWW was there to see them. 

In House on Fire, two unpopular prefects take shelter from pupils rioting outside, to the genial indifference of the headteacher’s PA. 17 year-old Luke Fields’ play, set in Northern Ireland and directed at a dizzying pace by Emily Burns, is packed with absurdist humour and slapstick comedy and packs a punch every time one hears the Belfast accent and all that connotes. Yes, there's a touch of Lindsay Anderson’s seminal movie, If, but 50 or more years on and in a school we can all recognise. 

Teulu, written by 19 year-old Emyr Strudwick and directed by Rufus Norris, also takes us to one of the nations of the UK, as a Welsh family (and its wider, but still tight knit community) fracture and a withdrawn, grieving teen learns what his father means to him and who his real friends are. Immediate parallels in the past would include the long-running BBC series, Play For Today, with its commitment to social commentary and working class stories. 

Both plays adhere to the mantra to write about what you know about and come freighted with authenticity as a result. The scripts may lack the polish that comes through multiple rewrites, but they gain a howling demand for something better, a burning desire to tell a story within the writer’s heart, with the confidence that only the absence of a fear of failure can bring. In the house, it felt like we were standing in a wind tunnel - which is exactly as it should be.

Artistic Director and Chief Executive of The National Theatre, Norris, had this to say. “New Views is a wonderful platform for young people across the UK to be empowered to share their perspective on topical issues as well as develop their creativity and writing skills, helping to nurture the next generation of theatre makers and writers while encouraging creative self-expression in whatever they choose to do in life." Let's hope the sentiment expressed there carries to Westminster.

But the last words should be left to the winners. 

Fields remarked - “Getting to advance my own skills whilst interacting with likeminded students and having the chance to read and see their work and what inspires everyone else was really special and exciting. I am overwhelmed with shock and surprise." 

Strudwick was no less transformed - "I was genuinely shocked: although I believe in the message of this play, I did not believe that my writing would be appreciated by other people. I am extremely grateful for this opportunity and excited to see how this play will develop."

You can find out more information about New Views including how to apply for next year’s competition here.

Photo Images: Emma Hare

  

 

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