Ben Onwukwe and Joe McFadden in The Shawshank Redemption
The Shawshank Redemption. The Alexandra Theatre, Birmingham.
Of course best known as the widely-lauded 1994 movie The Shawshank Redemption the piece actually started out as a 1982 novella (then called Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption) written by Stephen King.
The plot follows former banker Andy Dufresne (Joe McFadden) who is found guilty for the murders of his wife and her lover, despite his claims of innocence, and ends up in Shawshank Maximum Security Penitentiary, where corruption and violence are rampant. He befriends a fellow prisoner – contraband smuggler Ellis “Red” Redding (Ben Onwukwe). Red had staged a car accident, having previously insured his wife for a large amount, but a neighbour and her child also got into his wife’s car. As a result, Red was sentenced to three life sentences for the murders. Red is known for his ability to smuggle in almost any contraband via his connections. Andy asks Red to get him a rock hammer as he likes to collect minerals. He later asks him for a large poster of Rita Hayworth (we of course later find out what these items are really for). As Andy was a banker he also starts giving financial advice to both the inmates and staff.
The play explores all the aspects of prison life – the hierarchy, the gangs, violence, fear, corruption. The set is also very effective at evoking both containment and oppression. The play takes place over the course of twenty years and we get to see the journey of Andy’s time inside as well as other characters’ stories.
It’s a fantastic ensemble piece and you see the many characters that you’d find within a prison. The whole cast are really great. Bill Ward is excellent as the imposing Warden Stammas, but Ben Onwukwe as outstanding as Red. He really is the standout of the whole piece. A fantastically believable performance. And although he’s not doing an impression of Morgan Freeman in any way, he also has that same wonderfully rich voice that lends itself to the character so beautifully.
I’ve seen this production before in a previous outing in 2022. I don’t think this is as strong but it’s still an excellent stage adaption of a classic.
4 stars. Ensemble drama at its best.
