Entering the cavernous space via a makeshift box office, you’re free to explore the various scene-setting installations - a dead rabbit hanging by its legs, a tree suspended above a circle of crimson, piles of mud-coated junk, a cute illuminated fawn – and visit the unexpectedly plush bar before taking your (thankfully) padded red seat to watch the conventionally staged play as trains rumble noisily overhead.
Steel’s gloomy view of what Britain might be like in the near future – flooded by water, governed by fascist strongmen intent on rounding up the last of the “illegals” still roaming the countryside, and with food in short supply – is as unappealing as designer takis’ evocation of the remote Peak District farm turned Security outpost.
Here, with the help of Matti Houghton’s young Megan, Dearbhla Molloy’s strict Mrs. Peel caters as best she can for a trio of soldiers (Sam Hazeldine, Paul Rattray and newest arrival James Gethin Anthony – none of whom have much of a future to look forward to) under the control of Danny Webb’s newly promoted Burns, a whisky-sodden old-timer waiting in vain for his son to return from fighting over a pipeline in Venezuela.
There’s nothing wrong with the performances, and the chilly location adds atmosphere. But Steel’s scenario lacks originality and - despite a handful of well-written scenes, the occasional witty retort, and a single striking act - this drama (her first) is only as nourishing as Mrs Peel’s solitary early spud with its promise of better things to come.
The Old Vic Tunnels, Station Approach Rd, SE1 (Waterloo tube)hightide.org.uk oldvictheatre.com Till 26th June £20-£25 (under 25’s £12)
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