"It was commissioned by the Artistic Director of Nottingham Playhouse, Adam Penford, after Penford heard the story of how, in 2011 in Nottingham, a teenager (Dunne) threw a punch that resulted in the unintended death of a young man, James Hodgkinson. Punch is dedicated to James, and all victims of one-punch, a term for legal cases where a single punch has unforeseen fatal consequences and the perpetrator is convicted of manslaughter."
"The play opens with Jacob, played by David Shields, at a support group for ex-offenders. As Jacob tells his story, the other five members of the cast step into the roles of the people Jacob talks about. The actors switch between different characters as the narrative jumps back and forward in time, playing schoolchildren, club-goers, authority figures, friends and family members."
"The set is minimal but powerful, with a concrete semi-circular pedestrian overpass above an underpass to signify the council estate, the Meadows, where Jacob grew up with his single mother and brother. We learn how, as a teenager with autism, ADHD and dyslexia, Jacob would get in trouble at school before leaving with no GCSEs. Hanging out with others on the Meadows he likes to spend nights clubbing, drinking and doing drugs. The pacing is frenetic, mirroring the chaos in Jacob's life."
Punch adapts Jacob Dunne's memoir Right from Wrong into a stage play examining a 2011 one-punch incident that caused the unintended death of James Hodgkinson. The production centers on Jacob recounting events at a support group while five actors assume multiple roles as the story moves back and forth in time. The staging uses a minimal but evocative set to suggest the Meadows council estate. The play portrays Jacob's neurodivergence, lack of formal qualifications, and a youth shaped by clubbing, drinking and drug use. Frenetic pacing and physical performance underline the chaotic trajectory that culminates in the fatal punch.
Read at www.london-unattached.com
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