Pravda @ The Drama Studio Tom Stafford "Welcome to the foundry of lies" A conscientious young journalist, Andrew May (Tom Barham), has his newspaper taken over by the international media mogul Lambert LeRoux (Simon Crawford). LeRoux's habit of firing people for misdemeanour's as small as standing on the wrong side of the room quickly makes space for May's rise to the position of editor. As his up-market scruples clash with LeRoux's unprincipled popularism, can May find the courage to resist the new corruption taking over the British newspaper establishment? "He who fights monsters should take care to it that he does not become a monster himself. For when you stare deeply into the abyss, the abyss also stares deeply into you" Nietzsche Set mid-80s, LeRoux is plainly based on Rupert Murdoch's meteoric rise in the media world, his disrespect for the conventional way of doing things and his animal savagery in business. Simon Crawford is beyond magnificent as the personification of vampiric capitalism ("Buy it", "Sell it", "You're fired" "You're fired" "You're fired", "you're hired - I have lots of vacancies"). Brutal, hungry, psychotic, his slow menace is even more frightening when used to make jokes. He also gets all the best lines. "Why will no one fight me properly?" he asks. "I arrived and everyone just lay down, like they were expecting it". To the establishment figures he embodies the dilemma of liberalism: how do you resist someone with no respect for your rules. As he says, "You are weak because you do not know what to believe." The production, directed by Chris Hammond, is alive with the frenetic energy of the newsroom. The cast of 26 could risk cluttering the stage, but Hammond's direction just manages to keep the action pacey; the just-the-right-side-of-bewildering tempo pulls the audience in to the frenetic world of LeRoux's media empire ("Keep people scared. It's good for them"). SuTCo is riding high at the moment, and this is confirmed by the embarrassment of talent in Pravda. Pip Nixon excels in his minor role as Harry, the sodden old editor who explains to May the essence of successful editing - to provide the illusion of ceaseless novelty while maintaining conventions. "Everything can change except the style". Andy Dancer brings to Michael Quince (MP) the same gift for comic delivery that he displayed as Polonius in Hamlet. Pravda is a funny and fast-paced look at the publishing world. It also serves as a warning and a meditation for those of us who play any role in the media, including consuming it; for if we end up with bad newspapers is this their fault, or ours for buying them? Pravda is on until Saturday 8th March [Sheffield University Theatre Company] [Previous reviews, inc. 4:48 Psychosis] [home]