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Ruthless People: Ruthless - Arches Lane Theatre

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What is it about the Madoff’s that writers can’t resist writing about? Sure, it may have been the largest Ponzi scheme to collapse (so far), but there isn’t much more to explore. Or is there? In Ruthless by writer Roger Steinmann, Ruth Madoff is imagined as a wronged, gun-toting woman anchored in the past while trying to move on with her life. It’s not entirely successful but a fascinating look at life and wig choices, It’s currently playing at the theatre now known as the Arches Lane Theatre in Battersea. Ruth Madoff, played by Emily Swain, is here wearing a wig. I thought it was an odd look until I reviewed how closely it matched the photo of her interview in  The New York Times .  Typically, it’s the sort of wig you might see worn by Ladies on a night out in central London, not someone who once had over $80m in assets. With Bernie in Jail and both her sons now dead - one by suicide and one due to cancer, she is setting a table for the men who have left her. And ordering p...

Sneak previews and gospel singing: The Amen Corner

This week I was lucky enough to catch a rehearsal of the first act of The Amen Corner, which starts previewing at the National Theatre next week. Within forty five minutes it is fascinating to see even in rehearsal how all the elements of the story are laid out.

The play is set in Harlem in the 1950s and tells the story of a fiery pastor Sister Margaret whose estranged husband unexpectedly returns. Combined with the antics of her son her congregation is soon in revolt against her hard line leadership.


Written by James Baldwin, it was his first attempt at a play and covers the role of the church in African American families, along with how racial prejudice led to ingrained poverty amongst the communities. Jazz and gospel singing features throughout the piece and this will include members from the London Community Gospel Choir.

Even in rehearsal the cast and performances from both some new and familiar faces will be sure to enthral. After the rehearsal we were trying to work out when this play was staged in London. It possibly was staged in the 1970s at the Tricycle Theatre, but in a time of economic crisis and questions around hard line religion, it is perhaps time for the show to have its run in London.

One to discover and also part of the £12 Travelex season... Check the website for details of the run...

More details on the show are in the following...


Background to the photoshoot is below...

Photo credits: Marianne Jean-Baptiste (Sister Margaret Alexander) and Eric Kofi Abrefa (her son, David). Photo by Richard Hubert Smith.

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