The Boy at the back of the Class Theatre Review

Updated for the show’s return and national tour – our family-friendly review from Rose Theatre Kingston

The Boy at the Back of the Class – a stage adaptation of Onjali Q. Raúf’s bestselling book – is a moving and uplifting production that balances humour, playfulness and powerful themes about empathy, kindness and refugee experiences. Based on our visit to the Rose Theatre Kingston, this show remains as relevant and engaging today as ever.

I’ve struggled to watch the news lately. One war after another, lives lost in the channel, children suffering, atrocity after atrocity. It’s never ending. And disheartening. I wasn’t sure I wanted to burden the kids with a show about war-torn Syria and our country’s inexplicable inability to help its displaced. Perhaps something more light hearted? 

 But when I told my 8 year old we were going to review Nick Ahad’s adaptation, his eyes grew wide. “We read that at school mummy – it’s excellent!”

I couldn’t help thinking about this poignant lapse in judgement as I sat and watched the show at the Rose Theatre yesterday.

What is it about?

As you may have guessed the mise en scene is a classroom and the story is told through the gaze of the school children.

The first half unfolds through Alexa’s eyes (Sasha Desouza-Willock), recently bereaved and instinctively drawn to the boy with “the eyes of a lion”.

Breaking the fourth wall, she shares her curiosity about Ahmet. He’s different — yet the same. What language does he speak? Where is he from? What fruit does he like? With her self-appointed “A Team”, she turns questions into action, clambering up Lily Arnold’s jungle-gym set to the Mission: Impossible theme as they gamify their search for answers.

It’s bright and buoyant — until it isn’t.

The children overhear parents branding refugees “filthy”. Brendan the Bully (Joe McNamara) shows how easily prejudice is inherited. Even a teacher’s “blind eye” hides racism. Like To Kill a Mockingbird, the child’s perspective exposes adult hypocrisy with uncomfortable clarity.

For Ahmet, discrimination feels relentless.

But this story pivots to hope.

With the border about to close, Alexa and her crew launch a final mission to reunite him with his parents. Distrusting politicians and the press, they turn to the Queen. A chaotic dash to Buckingham Palace sees them mistaken for “tiny terrorists”, sparking an accidental media storm and a surge of public support.

The finale is gloriously feel-good: Ahmet and his family are granted permanent asylum.

Production and Delivery

It sounds like heavy stuff but told with humour and heart, for the most part – we sat laughing. The adult cast skilfully embodies the playful, fidgety frivolity of childhood. Swinging from the scenery, tugging awkwardly at their sleeves and using lemon sherbets as playground currency.

We loved the characterisation of Clarissa the ballet loving brat and Michael the gold stars hungry swot.

There is real tenderness coupled with scenes of riotous physicality. Fighting and football playing is captured with clever choreography (Kloe Dean and Maisie Carter) and complimenting sound effects (Giles Thomas).

In many ways this is a celebration of childhood, the power of friendship and the important message that we can all effect change, no matter how small. And yet there is an intended discomfort in the delivery. Both the first and second half start with a rude awakening. Sudden flashes of light, stage smoke and strobe lighting bring us back to Ahmet’s journey, danger and threat.

In the second half Ahmet tells his story of disrupted normality – his parents who got left behind and his sister who perished on the journey. A role played with sensitivity to the complexity of his plight – a nine year old boy who has has seen the worst of humanity but still relishes in football and friendship. 

Overall this show his hugely entertaining but also thought- provoking. On leaving the theatre my six year old asked ‘ …but is that war stuff real…I thought it was just in movies?’ It’s a difficult but necessary conversation and one I had neglected to have till now.

This is an important show with a powerful message. The book was written by Onjali Q. Rauf in 2018 but remains depressingly relevant and, in the wake of recent events and a growing refugee crisis – ever topical.

Prepare to laugh, shed a tear and walk out with a little more kindness in your heart.

The Boy at the Back of the Class is playing at the Rose Theatre, Kingston until 22nd February ahead of it’s national tour. More info here

Recommended for ages 7+ but all welcome. My 6 and 8 year old boys loved this show and the 2hrs 10 mins (incl interval) flew by.