The Seven Ages of Patience, directed by Katie Posner, takes us through various stages in the life of Patience, a midwife determined to contribute to the happiness of her neighbours, be it through medical aid before the NHS kicked in, or orchestrating her funeral to be a party, complete with a cross-generational guestlist and a steelpan band...
It’s difficult to comment on the performances themselves because, as the programme clearly states, this is a community play created, not with the intention of wowing a strange audience, but rather with the idea of celebrating the neighbourhood and its neighbours. And in this it succeeds. Whilst it’s clear that many of the cast are by no means professional actors, it is also abundantly clear how joyous an experience this is for them, and for the rest of the community sat in the audience.
For sure, The Seven Ages of Patience is not an edgy, innovative production set to transfer to the West End. But it does what it intends to do, which is to bring a community together. And in a time when many say that local communities are extinct, Brent is here to say it isn’t so.
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