REVIEW: LUCIFER by Roger Goldsmith at Bread and Roses Theatre, 28 - 30 Oct & 1 Nov 2025
‘snappy, funny two-hander’ ★★★ ½
Roger Goldsmith has a stammer. He doesn’t think that makes him inarticulate or stupid or unable to work, but there are many people – employers, audiences, interviewers – who do think that. To address that, Roger has written a snappy, funny two-hander to dispel misconceptions and to celebrate a stammering single dad and his Bowie-obsessed, adolescence-impacted son. Will Middleton and Lenius Jung play father and son, Will Middleton tracks the pauses and effort of stuttering speech with care and precision, and the play leaves its attentive, enthusiastic audience with a happy glow. Many people are mean and unpleasant, but this pair face up to the problems, support each other, come out the other side of depression and despair into a hopeful future.
The play is a sort of stammerer’s fairy tale, with a happy ending after a horrible event, but that’s ok. The advocacy group STAMMA (https://stamma.org) have supported the play, the actual experiences of the playwright form the background to it, and it is a piece of effective advocacy discussing a condition that is common but not well understood.
On at Bread and Roses Theatre 29th and 30th October, and matinee and evening Saturday 1st November.
LUCIFER
by Roger Goldsmith, directed by Luci Florence
28th - 30th October and 1st November
Box Office https://www.breadandrosestheatre.co.uk/
