The Donmar Warehouse is taken back in time as writer Danny Lee Wynter delivers a tender, poignant family comedy-drama. Set in the 90s, Ilford Boy follows mixed-race teenager Ted as he struggles with grief, identity, and his hilariously chaotic family until the arrival of Patrick, an old family friend, changes everything. The production deserves much credit for its craft, humour and heart; however, one can’t help but feel that the real meat of the premise is somewhat lost as the play spreads itself a bit too thin.
There are plenty of positives to be found in Ilford Boy. Wynter’s dialogue is as razor-sharp as it is intentional, filled with jokes that had the Donmar Warehouse audience in fits of laughter. Although the large cast of characters hampers the central plot somewhat, this does have the benefit of giving most of the family their own fun quirks and idiosyncrasies. The script juggles a lot of tones fairly well, delivering precise and relatable one-liners while also having some room for moments of genuine tenderness and even tension. It’s hard to begrudge the writer’s ambition as they try to touch on multiple intense themes such as grief, self-discovery, generational trauma, discrimination, belonging, and the different faces of masculinity, but the play is arguably at its most engaging when it serves as a love letter to theatre itself and an ode to a community of Black elders who were and still are sorely needed to guide young men like Ted.
The creative team make some inspired choices in bringing the script to the stage. Tim Sheader’s direction keeps the production fluid, working well with Peter McKintosh’s set design to create an intimate experience that feels homely yet claustrophobic when the chaos begins to unfold. Aideen Malone’s lighting design provides a number of memorable moments, helping to set the stage for multiple explorations of the past and perfectly punctuating some of the play’s most effective set pieces. It’s also hard to overstate the effectiveness of Ebony Molina’s movement direction, with a standout feature of the production being how the characters move around each other and the dynamism with which they move around the stage.
Ilford Boy is also stacked with great performances from its cast. Leo Whitfield Harris anchors the show, delivering a solid turn as a character in the midst of personal upheaval and the discovery of his voice. Every member of the ensemble cast brings the laughs with sharp comedic timing while showing enough restraint in the more serious segments to largely avoid devolving into melodrama. Charlotte Jaconelli has many of the show’s funniest lines, while Lindsey Coulson’s turn as the family matriarch makes the most of every moment on the stage. Gershwyn Eustache Jnr is stellar as Ted’s father, Kenny, balancing a hyper-masculine bluster with an insecurity and an underlying softness that really sells the pathos of the patriarchal prison that he both suffers and inflicts. The standout performance of the show, however, is Craig Stein as Patrick. The moment Stein bursts onto the stage, he grips the audience with his humour, magnetism, and vibrancy while also maintaining a grounded world-weariness and a wisdom that makes the character feel real. There’s a truly breathtaking sequence in which Stein steals the show, prompting rapturous applause from the Donmar Warehouse audience.
Despite its strengths, much of what holds Ilford Boy back is the time it spends on so many characters, leaving one wishing that it could have focused much more on the premise. While all of the actors give committed performances, the lengthy periods of dialogue between them and the juggling act that they necessitate mean that some of them feel more like clichés and broad strokes, regardless of how funny they are. This is a shame, as the core story of Ted, his mother Tillie, Patrick, and Kenny genuinely has promise and manages to deliver many of the show’s most potent moments, but the effectiveness of them is dulled by tonal inconsistencies, the lack of time to flesh them out, and the often telegraphed payoff. In spite of such a great performance, Patrick’s relationship with Ted, which is so vital to the plot and the metatextual appeal of his character, doesn’t receive as much attention as it needs to really sell their bond and his lasting effect on the teenager’s life.
Ultimately, Ilford Boy is a beautiful piece of art with fantastic performances, endless witty dialogue and moving moments. Wynter’s story will resonate with many who found themselves searching for belonging as Ted did, and there’s a bittersweet beauty in seeing a young man feel so seen by an elder like Patrick, something that a generation of young people in Ted’s position were robbed of. It’s a shame that Ilford Boy doesn’t quite lean into what makes it such a powerful and thought-provoking premise, but even with that, it’s well worth the watch.
Listings and ticket information can be found here
