Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *

Cast: Ned Dunne, Max Himpe, Flinn Andreae, George Beard, Henry Eaton-Mercer, Henry Cobb.

Being a socially awkward teenager is hard enough but when you don’t fit in with anybody, when neither the conformists or the radicals will take you in and give you a place at their table, the only course of action is to start your own group, your own movement and if wins you respect or the love of the girl you fancy, then being a Radpole is a position to hold sacred and true to your soul.

Of course being a socially awkward teenage boy on the verge of manhood and the prospect of university is not the playground of those who wish to fit in, whose own niche friendships have taken a turn for the void; it is the place in which many sit but few agonise over, at least with open admittance.

Radpole is a fast moving play, punctuated by the sound of guitar, driven by comic demons and one that happily slightly exaggerates the mystery of being always on the verge but never as the centre of attention, unless it is with stigma of ridicule being firmly attached to ones actions.

The six strong cast play with the idea of inclusion well and in Ned Dunne as Not Ned, the plays confessional type nature worked like a dream and with the other characters fitting in with his own inner monologue, inclusion was ideal that was striven for, after all we all wish to fit in somewhere, we all wish to be seen as both amiable enough to conform, punk enough, radical enough to question why we should be concerned about being part of the norm; it is in the end just about how big a frog we bring to the party which ends up defining us.

Cleverly written, a smashing surprise to get your teeth into, Radpole offers audiences at this year’s Edinburgh Festival a good look at what it means to feel awkward, out of place but with the energy to challenge the position you have been placed into; Double Edge Drama have offered up a visual treat.

Ian D. Hall