Review: The Boy Who Made It Rain, Alma Tavern Theatre – “A powerful exploration of bullying, class identity, prejudices and teenage angst”

The premiere of The Boy Who Made It Rain at the intimate theatre venue of Alma Tavern Theatre in the leafy suburbs of Clifton got off to an rollicking start to the sound of a Smiths track before an expectant audience.

Based on the young adult novel by Brian Conaghan of the same title, The Boy Who Made It Rain is the debut theatre adaptation of the rising star of British theatre, George Harold Millman.

Millman came across the novel by Brian Conaghan while still at the University of Essex and was immediately impressed with its potential for theatre.

Directed by Millman’s partner, Owen B Lewis and the pair forms a formidable power couple bringing unbridled energy and fresh perspective to this mercurial theatre production.

It is a brave and bold theatre piece which explores bullying, class identity and the anxieties among young adults that keeps you on the edge of your seats with its fast pace trajectory.

The story revolves around Clem Curran, a high school student who moved from Eastbourne to Glasgow due to change circumstances of his immediate surroundings. With his academic excellence, cut-glass public school accent and good looks, adapting to the new environment should not have been tricky.

He is the dream pupil with the teachers’ approval, the girls’ attention, and the boys’ jealousy. But his reverie of talking about The Smiths and fine literature comes to an abrupt halt and his personality begins to unravel as he becomes a target of the most feared clique of bullies in the school, the Neds.

In the first act the creators provide glimpses into Clem’s life while the second act develops those brief encounters into detailed montages. The set consists of a class room which could be seamlessly turned into a home and a dining room with a change of props.

“The change of sets were slick and seamless and the pace of the play made it an exhilarating experience” – photo: Marek Bomba

In the first scene we are introduced to Pauline Croal (played by Darcy Keeble Watson), freshly out of teacher training college and determined to ditch the antiquated practice of teaching which turns the process of learning into a drag rather than a mind-expanding experience.

Darcy Keeble Watson deftly captures the idealistic zeal and energy of the young teacher who swims against the tide to make her teaching come alive.

“The new boy” in the class Clem (George Harold Millman) impresses the teacher with his invigorating interpretation of We Need to Talk About Kevin in the class. Clem’s input ironically sets the tone for the play when he challenges the notion that in a school tragedy as in a shooting, the blame is always left at the door of society as if the individuals in question lack agency.

It is evident that the creators have gone to great lengths to create multi-faceted and complex dramatis personae as opposed to two-dimensional characters that often find their way to young adult genre.

Clem’s class mate Rosie (Becca Sharp) is both intrigued and impressed with the articulate and confident personality of Clem while Rosie’s best friend, Cora (Eden Barrie) feels a sense of being sidelined as Rosie spends an inordinate time with Clem. Sharpe and Barrie play the strained dynamics of friendship with nuance and finesse while the boys are mostly indifferent to Clem with no ill will or ulterior designs are portrayed to a tee by Ellis Rae and David Virgo.

The social commentary surrounding the grasp of language and accent is both thought provoking and refreshing. Although Clem does not hail from an upper class bourgeoise background, his accent functions both as a protective shield and an open invitation to ridicule and bullying.

Questions such as what does a particular accent represent are discussed without being didactic. The internal politics in education is also brought to sharp focus where the sympathetic head of the English Department, Mr. Cunningham (Mike Harley) is quite enlightening as he relates his views and opinions about each of the characters.

Clem’s former English teacher, Mr.Goldsmith (Steve Huggins) is also full of empathy towards the difficulties Clem faced as he became a soft target for bullies.

In this pervasive atmosphere of teenage angst the parents, as played Celia Kelly, Rebecca Parr and Mike Harley, are the ultimate victims as they are gripped with a sense of inadequacy and helplessness.

The change of sets were slick and seamless and the pace of the play made it an exhilarating experience. The final scene left the audience to a pin-drop silence which then turned into a standing ovation providing a seal of approval for The Boy Who Made It Rain.

Main photo: Marek Bomba

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