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(ear)
A telling tale of remembrance
Confessions of Honour Lichfield
Garrick Studio *****
CONFESSIONS of Honour, written and directed by Gerry Hinks, should, I
believe, be compulsory viewing on Remembrance Weekend. The
compelling, poignant and often funny play has you hanging on every word
moving you from laughter to tears and back again. Keith Minshull is totally believable as World War II veteran, Frederick Salisbury VC, even down to his highly polished shoes and regimental badge worn with pride. Aged 69, he is returning the Victoria Cross to his regiment, the First Staffordshire, on the 50th anniversary of his decoration for his valour at Epernay; saving a comrade whilst under fire.
There will be a march-past and
dinner. He can't understand what all the fuss is about.
There was never this fuss when he received his medal from the late King;
‘didn't even get a cup of tea'. Alyson Joynes, plays with
compassion and a real interest, the kindly Sergeant Major Karen Baker
aka Chief; the face of the modern army. Hinks plays Meissler with
Tuetuonic efficiency and logic, later allowing us into his tortured
soul. Now 68 and a newspaper editor he is here to interview
Salisbury about events at Epernay. As the story unfolds we
realise that there are always two sides to every story and in this case
there are even more. The audience hangs on to every word as the
events unfold, giving an insight to the horrors of war and what people
had to do to survive. When Meissler interviews
Salisbury he asks ‘What do you remember most….?' ‘The noise…and
the rain' replies Salisbury, very real hardships of war that aren't
always considered. Whilst the two old soldiers
have never actually met before their stories are inextricably linked. This is a story which
challenges sterotypes such as the ‘Germans' and a woman's role in the
army. It encompasses changing times, male bonding and, most
importantly, that we have more in common with our enemy than we think.
12-11-11 Lynda Ford
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