AD: Press ticket.
When I heard that Teechers was going on tour, I couldn’t wait to get to see it. The adventures of Salty, Gail and Hobby – or at least one of John Godber’s many comedies – will be familiar to many of us who studied drama, and I directed a version of the show as part of my final exam piece. As such, I was really excited to see what this new version, updated for the post-pandemic world we are now in, had in store.
For those who have never seen Teechers, it’s a play-within-a-play set at a fictional, inner-city comprehensive. As we’re told at the start, “the names, places and faces have changed to protect the innocent”, but essentially it’s a plea to the kids’ fictional drama teacher to remain at the school, rather than moving to the nicer private school down the road. Unsurprisingly, it’s also therefore a statement on the class divide, contrasting the realities of the two schools and lending itself well to a post-Covid modernisation.
Entering the auditorium, the audience are greeted by the kids themselves, clambering over seats and taking time to chat to most audience groups – I recall I made a similar directorial choice at A level! This almost-immersive introduction helps to get the audience familiar with the concept of breaking the fourth wall, something done frequently with many of Godber’s comedies and a nice prologue to the play-within-a-play. The set itself is simple, with three (heavily graffitied) desks and chairs, along with a props box and three water bottles at the back of the stage – we’re going to see everything! If there were any doubts too about when the play was set these were readily cast aside by the nature of graffiti – LGBTQ+ Pride flags and Ukraine hearts.
The narrative is brought to life by Ciara Morris (The Play That Goes Wrong, Beast Quest) as Gail, Michael Ayiotis (The Sun, The Mountain and Me) as Salty and Terenia Barlow (Bridgerton) as Hobby, all of whom work together strongly as a unit. Many of the supporting characters are portrayed by multiple performers, with identifying actions – such as a point for stern deputy head Dr. Basford or whisking their tie over the shoulder for the head Mrs. Parry – and accents clearly defining who is who. The multi-rolling was carried out with skill throughout the production, allowing each character to develop a personality no matter which performer was at the helm.
Teechers’ strongest point, both for the original production and this update, is its witty and gritty political commentary across the spectrum – references to Ofsted inspections, Zoom examinations and the price of milk bring the production bang up to date, all with the underlying theme that, ultimately, politicians have failed children in the state sector. Salty sums it up nicely: “it’s a game to them”.
Despite the modernity of the book it was a little disappointing that this wasn’t fully reflected in the casting – whilst we obviously don’t know who was in the room, three white performers in a show so critical of the class divide felt rather at odds to me. This, of course, is a bigger conversation throughout the theatre industry at the moment, but it is proof that even the punchiest of plays have still got further room to grow and to, perhaps, be a little more introspective. We learn that Whitewall is seeking out ‘specialist technology status’ at the expense of more creative and vocational options – a sad but very real indictment of the arts in 2023.
Victoria Spearing’s set design and Alan Valentine’s lighting really helps to place the characterisation of the piece front and centre. As I often say on these pages and on our podcast, I’m a firm believer in ‘less is more’, and this production oozes it – from clever lighting devices to symbolise the revered ‘timetable’ through to a very obvious addition of smoke for certain scenes, it brings home the BTec drama feel without coming across as tacky or ‘amateur’. I particularly liked the use of LED light pads as phone screens!
All in all, this is the same Teechers many of us know and love, but fully-updated for the TikTok generation. It demonstrates that in almost forty years actually not that much has changed across Society; if anything the class divide has furthered, not contracted. Godber’s work still has a very real and on-the-nose place in 2023; the problems are not bully Oggy Moxon, old-hand Dr. Basford or grouchy caretaker Doug. The problem is the very system itself. Hobby’s closing words highlights the bitterness and anger of generations: ‘you’re a liar, Miss’.
Teechers Leavers’ 22 was seen at the Greenwich Theatre and is touring across the UK throughout May 2023.
