The Flint Street Nativity

Written by Tim Firth, Directed by Matthew Lloyd
Liverpool Playhouse (7th December 2006 - 20th January 2007)

Reviewed by Colin Serjent

I don't wish to be a killjoy at this time of year but the joke of watching adults playing the characters of children botching up a primary school nativity play soon wore thin.

Perhaps I should have read the warning signs when I discovered that it was originally shown on television, which never fails to be a reference point for good taste!

The length of the production, written by Tim Firth and directed by Matthew Lloyd, could easily have been reduced by twenty minutes, without any detrimental effect to the coherence of the play. Notably the closing scenes fell flat, when the actors switched from being kids to portraying their parents attending the school. This was unnecessary and served no real purpose in its overall concept.

It also seemed to be a waste of some talented actors, including Leanne Best (Unprotected), who played the angel Gabriel, and whose use of a broad Liverpool accent proved grating to the ears, and Gillian Kearney (Hedda Gabler), who takes the part of Mary.

Watching actors playing characters who can’t act makes you feel you are watching a mediocre amateur dramatic society production in a village hall - it is not entertaining or amusing.

But perhaps I missed the point completely of The Flint Street Nativity. The rest of the audience seemed to love it. However around this time of year people’s value judgements of things Christmas seems to go out of the window.

The panto Jack and the Beanstalk at the Everyman, which I reviewed, is fun, fun, fun but this play is many miles removed from that.

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Comments:

Comment left by Lushka on 17th January, 2007 at 10:35
i went to see the show last night at the playhouse and was really impressed. i have been acting on stage since i was nine years old and as any good actor will tell you acting like you cant act is REALLY HARD. dont judge what you dont know

Comment left by uzumakiabby on 16th May, 2007 at 0:38
ryt i agree is was amazin! in fact it was so good im writing about it 4 my gcse exam. I know for a fact it is incredibly difficult to act like you cant but the actors in the production did it o effectivley. Poer to tjemQ

Comment left by Emma on 27th February, 2008 at 15:45
We did a reprodution of it in drama and went to see the real thing. I have to do 8pages coursework on it!!!!!!!thanks alot! email me and help arggggggghhhhhhhhhhhh xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Comment left by Chris P on 9th June, 2008 at 20:45
I thaught it was great!, i'm also doing it for my GCSE's tomorrow!! i neeed help!!! :o

Comment left by Andy Hughes on 26th December, 2009 at 8:07
"Perhaps I should have read the warning signs when I discovered that it was originally shown on television, which never fails to be a reference point for good taste!" You're an idiot. It was excellent on tv. Watch things before you pass judgment. "But perhaps I missed the point completely of The Flint Street Nativity." Yes, you did. "However around this time of year people’s value judgements of things Christmas seems to go out of the window." Shut up, you pompous fool.

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