★★★
“It was just an accident,” Chef (Wayne Rollins) declares after a brick is thrown through the takeaway’s window. The audience aren’t sure whether he’s convincing himself, the three women in his life, or everybody watching with bated breath. It is the first time that Takeaway confronts you head on with what can ensue from class and culture clashes, and today’s rapidly changing world.
Takeaway, written by Nathan Powell and directed by Amanda Huxtable, is set in Toxteth, Liverpool, the well known inner city L8 postcode with its diverse communities. Here at the centre stage are a family running the slowly sinking Hylton’s Caribbean Takeaway. There’s a familiar cast of characters: headstrong daughter Shelly (Bene Sebuyange) who escaped for the big city life and is back to help out; laidback, fun-loving daughter Browning (Adi Alfa) who had a child when she was young; and the tight-lipped, fiercely-protective-to-her-detriment mother Carol (Phina Oruche) who will run the ship with her head held high as it capsizes. They are joined by charismatic Chef, who just wants to make good food and Shelly’s white boyfriend (Bill Caple) Rupert, or Ranald, or something, who Carol just doesn’t want to hear about, let alone indulge. He’s a red, before you ask, in a line delivered to perfection.
From the off, the characters are simmering. They are dealing with rising costs, investors poking around, and developers trying to scrap the football fields in the local community for some swanky high-rises. It is the looming gentrification synonymous with today’s economy, and whilst Toxteth is in the limelight, other UK cities could just as easily be swapped in. Powell attempts to unpick this through several lenses. He gives a voice to protecting culture, the lurk of generational trauma, and the question of how to stay afloat when there feels like no way out. The script can feel laboured but moments of greatness shine through. Where the writing sometimes lacks nuance, it bounces right back with faultless comedic timing showing the many layers of what’s at stake. Chef, in particular, never misses a beat as he finds himself a constant presence in the family drama.
Takeaway encapsulates the feeling of belonging; as soon as you enter the Everyman Theatre you can sense the familial, vibrant nature of Hylton’s. The unbelievable attention to detail of the set, credit to Georgia Wilmot, ranges from strung-up bunting of the Jamaican flag to a hand-drawn ‘Mum’ picture on the noticeboard, all the way to the purple Liverpool wheelie bin on the street out the front. Even if you took no notice of anything else going on, you would still be picking up hidden details hours after you started. As Scouse as it is Jamaican, a sense of home echoes throughout the performance.
Entertaining and important, Takeaway brings imperative local stories to the forefront of new writing and new theatre. Whilst some of the creases still need to be ironed out, powerful moments litter the performance as the audience watch societal change play out for one family in real time. Tender and laugh-out-loud, Takeaway is an important reminder to cherish your community and never give up the fight.
Takeaway will be performed at the Liverpool Everyman until 17 May.
Words by Hannah Goldswain.
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