Political ideology and educational policy combine with family dramas in Steve Waters’s Little Platoons, a satirical look at the coalition government’s Big Society.
Staged in West London’s Bush theatre, Waters doesn’t shy away from making the audience squirm with recognition. Based around a group of very familiar middle-class lefties, they are all fed up with the education their children are forced into, the only options left being Steiner schools – “A bit iron your own muesli” – or paid education, a fate worse than death for these bourgeois families with a chip on their shoulder from their own school days.
Rachel, a teacher at the local failing comprehensive, finds herself in a similar predicament when her son is rejected from all but his last choice secondary school, coincidentally the school she teaches at. When her ex-boyfriend threatens to take him to the country in search of a better education, Rachel finds herself in desperate need of another option.
After initial scepticism, Rachel finds herself part of a group of very middle-class parents planning to set up a free school. But as the group soon discovers, ideology on paper can become far more complicated when put into practise, and while they are only beginning to realise that parenting is not a weekend job, running a school too begins to take over their lives.
Waters’s play deals with the politics surrounding what is a very complex issue well, but at its heart Little Platoons is a study of family life and a close look at what it means to be a citizen under the current government. Staged within a simple set surrounded by chalkboard walls, Waters’s sharp script takes centre stage with his larger than life characters all determined to have their say.
Nick, the head of the group, is as charismatic as he is sarcastic, over accentuating his vowels and always unbuttoning one two many buttons on his 100% cotton linen shirts. In the second half the audience watches his marriage slowly crumble as he remains unaware of anything but the plight of the school.
Rachel, whose actions walk a thin line between ethics and one-upmanship with her ex, is the most relatable character, unsure of where her loyalties lie as a parent and teacher. As her and Michael’s failing relationship is analysed, their high ethical standards of living and social conscience are shown to quickly disintegrate when difficult problems facing society are suddenly placed on their doorstep.
What begins as a play about the idea of big society is quickly boiled down to individual stories and viewpoints, personal triumphs and solo successes. While Waters has stated he doesn’t want to suggest any answer to the question of whether free schools can work, it is a damming portrayal and can leave the audience in no doubt of his opinion.
CM