A War of Two Halves & Sweet FA
A War of Two Halves: ★★★★★
Sweet FA: ★★★★★
Tynecastle Park: Sat 9 – Thur 21 Nov 2024
Review by Hugh Simpson
The return to Tynecastle Park of A War of Two Halves and Sweet FA is a thoroughly welcome one. The first two efforts from Two Halves Productions, both by Paul Beeson, Bruce Strachan and Tim Barrow, remain the most acclaimed.
It must be stressed that these, while they are of primary interest to football fans and Hearts fans in particular, are remarkable productions that will appeal to anyone who cares about Edinburgh, history, equality or good theatre.
A scene from A War of Two Halves. Pic: Robin Mitchell
A War of Two Halves, being presented one last time, is the story of the table-topping Hearts team of 1914 who all volunteered for the war, forming the basis of what became known as McCrae’s Battalion. As before, the production is site-specific moving around the ground at Tynecastle, involving some areas the public would not normally see.
Sweet FA is set in the same period, and tells of the women of the British Rubber Company at Fountainbridge, making welly boots for the Front and forming their own football team, in a tuneful, energetic and musical tale of friendship, love, chauvinism and loss. Previously seen on a stage in front of Tynecastle’s Main Stand, in view of the pitch, it is now in a traverse format in an area on the stand’s concourse.
new casts
While both productions feature new casts, the older play (directed by Strachan) remains very similar to before. Sweet FA, however, is a much-changed production, directed by Amie Burns Walker.
The new performers are drawn from 4th year BA (Hons) Acting and Performance students at Queen Margaret University, but no allowance need be made for their youth or comparative inexperience. Both casts are committed, talented and exceptionally promising.
A scene from Sweet FA. Pic: Robin Mitchell
Having casts who already know each other surely helps with the creation of an ensemble spirit; both plays are about unbreakable bonds forged in adversity, and this comes across wonderfully here.
Aside from the excellent Beeson, who doubles as both the older version of narrator Alfie Briggs and the sporting battalion’s head Sir George McCrae, the rest of the cast of AWoTH are genuinely fresh-faced youngsters. This adds even more poignancy to what is already a heart-rending tale.
There is no sensationalism, easy sentimentality or glorification in the production, but there are moments that are almost unbearably sad. Even the most hard-bitten and traditional of football fans are advised to take a handkerchief. Wrapping up warm is also recommended, as you are outside for much of the production.
determination
Sweet FA, meanwhile, may be under a roof but the space cannot really be said to be indoors in the traditional sense, so coats and hats are also advised. The youth of the cast could have been a drawback here, as the characters vary widely in age, but the determination of the performers more than makes up for this.
The new staging, meanwhile, has some real advantages; the proximity of the performers makes the comedy even more charged, the emotional moments more immediate, and the singing more visceral. The traverse staging, and a couple of tiny first-night glitches, mean that there is the odd problem with audibility, but nothing major.
The cast of Sweet FA. Pic: Robin Mitchell
Seeing the two productions in close succession only adds to the impact. They are companion pieces in subject and period but very different in feel. Sweet FA is a piece of post-Cheviot political theatre, all consciousness-raising, songs and earthy comic realism. While AWoTH is a more sombre affair, is has its comic moments, just as Sweet FA has some very dark patches, and both feature casts whose connection with the audience is immediate and vital. Both plays, moreover, despite their historic setting, have frighteningly contemporary resonance.
Aside from Beeson, AWoTH has the tremendous Harris McRobert as the younger version of Briggs, ably backed up by Liam Bain, Adam Blackwood, Brocas McOwan, Gregor Curran and Stephen Hastings as his team-mates. They are all very fine indeed, with Hastings and Blackwood particularly impressive in the way they can switch from comedy to pathos in the blink of an eye.
A similarly versatile performance comes from Mohammad Gill as the Hibs-supporting Private, while Max Agnew has a gravitas belying his age as the manager John McCartney. Aimée Campbell’s calm authority in a variety of roles (alternating with Lucia Ireland) is also notable.
presence
Campbell and Ireland also feature in Sweet FA. Campbell – like everyone else involved – shows real skill in both comedy and tragedy. Ireland also has a classic double-act with Kady Lyon, who has genuine comic talent.
Olivia Chapman and Brogan Hale, as the central figures Alice and Daisy, have real presence. Ceit Smith manages the very difficult business of playing someone much older with great skill, and the rest of the cast – Indigo Buchanan, Jenna Stones and Liss Berwick – help to make up an exceptionally impressive ensemble.
A scene from A War of Two Halves. Pic: Two Halves Productions.
Eve Murray’s design for both productions is superb, with the problem of not having room for a traditional set in Sweet FA solved brilliantly. Matthew Brown’s musical direction is equally good, with the band in Sweet FA helping considerably. The musical numbers are given added impetus by Stephanie Arsoska’s magnificent movement direction.
There have been plenty of theatrical productions in the past that have been linked to a football club, relied on that connection to attract an audience, been probably just about good enough to satisfy that audience and are probably best forgotten about afterwards.
These two plays are undoubtedly not in that category, or they wouldn’t have kept coming back. They are both extremely well written. In the case of AWoTH, this is clearer with each repeated viewing. Both are directed with the utmost care and imagination. The young casts give both fresh impetus, and anyone who hasn’t seen either of them before should grab this chance while they can.
Running times:
A War of Two Halves: One hour and 55 minutes (no interval)
Sweet FA: Two hours (including one interval)
Tynecastle Park, McLeod St, EH11 2NL
A War of Two Halves: Tue 12 – Sat 16 Nov 2024
Tue, Thurs, Fri: 8.15pm; Tue, Thurs, Sat: 6pm; Sat Mat: 1.15pm
Tickets and details: Book here.
Previous reviews: click here.
Sweet FA: Mon 11 – Sat 16 Nov 2024
Mon, Wed, Sat: 8.15pm; Wed, Fri: 6pm; Sat Mat: 3.45pm
Tickets and details: Book here.
Previous reviews: click here.
A scene from Sweet FA. Pic: Robin Mitchell
Facebook: @twohalvesprod,
Instagram: @twohalvesprod,
X: @TwoHalvesProd.
Some of the A War of Two Halves cast. Pic: Two Halves Productions.
ENDS
