At the Park Theatre in Finsbury Park, I had the chance to see one of the first showcases of a new production show called Pressure, written by Oliver award winner, David Haig. It is a show set in June 1944, D-Day which was the day in World War 2 in which allied forces invaded northern France by means of beach landings in Normandy – aka, the most important invasion in history. Seeing as the plot is centred around the weather forecast and the soldiers desperation a final decision to keep 350,000 people alive, I'd say Pressure is a more than fitting title.  

The entire performance is set in the office of a very stressed out, Scottish meteorologist James Stagg (played by Haig himself), who is trying to decipher a forecast map to predict weather a storm will occur or not. As he puts it "This is English weather: You can't predict it!", to his partner, American meteorologist, who is certain that a storm will not come. The pair can't see eye to eye, which makes this a great comedy, which some of the jokes had the audience in stitches. Although the play is set in one room, it makes it even more captivating, as we get to see everything from the point of view of the main character, James. The audience get a chance to understand his backstory and it reiterates how different life was during the war.

While sitting in the audience, I noticed that I was the only one in the audience from my age group. In fact, I was one of the only two people in the audience who was black. I was dumbfounded by this, as I was previously at a Hamlet play in Hackney Empire that was attended by a diverse group of people. But of course, it’s hard to compare a small-scale production to any play by Shakespeare. It lead me to consider the reason for this. Perhaps it was that the whole plot of the play was something that wouldn't attract teens, or maybe because the demographic of the actors was relatable to the white middle class. Maybe it was the fact that the Hamlet play was put on in a very popular place in London and was advertised months before. With that said, having a play in a smaller room really does give you a connection with the actors that you don’t have with others. You can make eye contact with the actors and feel that you are just at home. It was clear from the moment I stepped in that I wasn't the target audience of the show. The humour was a clear sign. I can't say I found all the jokes funny (I can't even say I understood all the jokes) but some of them did make me chuckle here and there.  

Aside from the humour, one thing that fascinated me about this play was the realism of the props. From the cigarettes to the typewriter, it honestly felt like I was part of their world. The amount of cigarette smoke that I had blown in my face was breathtaking. Regardless, I was hooked onto the plot and was interested to see what would happen next. When it got to the intersession, all I could think about is what was going to happen next. 

Overall, I'd say my experience at the theatre was an interesting one. I found the story boring at first, but I gradually got into it and, by the end, I enjoyed it more than I thought I would. I guess doing things outside your comfort zone is proven to be good.