‘Small Island’ comes to Leeds Playhouse with urgency and heart – Review

Headshot poster for ‘Small Island’. Image Credit: Leeds Playhouse.

Andrea Levy’s award‑winning novel ‘Small Island’ has taken a significant step beyond the capital, as, for the first time, the stage adaptation is touring outside London, premiering at Leeds Playhouse. The production delivers a sharply observed, emotionally charged interpretation of Levy’s landmark windrush story. TSOTA attended the press night to witness a play that blends humour, heartbreak and historical reckoning with striking theatricality.

Andrea Levy’s story was first adapted for theatres by Helen Edmundson in a 2019 National Theatre production. Now directed by Matthew Xia, the Leeds Playhouse production continues to expose Britain’s failure to live up to the promises it made to the Windrush generation. Through a revolving stage, whip‑smart dialogue and fluid movement that gives the story immediacy, the play cuts through the nostalgia that often glorifies Britain’s post war narrative. 

Under the British Nationality Act of 1948, Britain promised members of Commonwealth countries a better life and more opportunities in the UK. Due to labour shortages in transport, postal and health services throughout the UK, the act granted citizenship to everyone in the British Empire. Migrants travelling to the UK to fill these shortages hoped to escape poverty, benefit from greater security and make something of themselves. Instead they experienced brutal discrimination. Landlords turned them away, employers refused to hire them, or paid them lower wages for the same jobs. This discrimination continued for decades, leading to many migrants becoming victims of what we now refer to today as the Windrush scandal. Xia’s production places this betrayal centre stage.

Rhys Stephenson, Jordan Laviniere, Paul Hawkyard and Daniel Ward in rehearsals for Small Island. Image Credit: Pamela Raith Photography.

The play follows the story of four key characters whose lives intertwine despite their contrasting backgrounds. Act one lays the foundation, showing the audience each of the character’s backstory. Act two raises the stakes as audiences are confronted with how the characters’ fate combines with the ramifications of Britain’s lack of empathy and education about the commonwealth. 

Hortense, played by Anna Crichlow, grows up disciplined into silence by her Aunt and Uncle. Michael Roberts, her cousin, best friend and first love was her secret. Their fluid, playful movement early on in the play expresses the freedom of childhood, contrasting with the rigid physicality imposed on Hortense as she grows. Directed by movement and intimacy director Asha Jennings-Grant, these choices powerfully visualise the emotional and cultural constraints placed upon Hortense as her curious and analytical identity is repressed by punishment and criticism, the rewarding nature of curiosity and critical thinking. 

When the story shifts to Britain, we meet Queenie, portrayed by Bronte Barbé with warmth and easy charm. Desperate to escape rural drudgery, she accepts Bernard Blythe’s (Mark Arends), proposal. Through her marriage, she forms a friendship with Arthur Blythe (Paul Hawkyard), the unexpected heart of the production. Silenced by shell shock, he communicates to the audience via gesture, using pauses to give the audience a cheeky nod before continuing his reaction. This not only broke the fourth wall, but added humour and weight to his purposeful reactions. Despite being overlooked by society, both the audience and Queenie valued his intelligence and upstanding morals in a time when it was so easy to become divided by hate. He does not discriminate, values connection and loves others deeply.  

Bronté Barbé (Queenie) and Mark Arends (Bernard) in rehearsals for Small Island. Image Credit: Pamela Raith Photography.

Finally, the play would not be complete without Gilbert Josephs, played by Daniel Ward, a young Jamaican man who fought in the war and values his education. While opportunities in Jamaica are sparse, the promises given in the UK Government offer hope and prosperity. Gilbert and Hortense marry on a deal that they both move to the UK to find something better for themselves. Their shifting proximity throughout the play from an initial distance to a sense of warmth and affection becomes a subtle marker for trust and survival.

While the actors carried the emotional weight of storytelling, the production wouldn’t have the same powerful impact without the whole creative team. Costume designer, Simon Kenny, visually demonstrated Britain’s warped views through striking costumes. Hortense, Gilbert and Michael (all characters originating from the West Indies) dressed sharply, in structured silhouettes and starched fabrics that reflected pride and aspiration. Contrastingly, Queenie and Bernard’s clothes depicted effort without substance. Made with thinner, less shapely material and no evidence of ironing, their clothes symbolised a fragile British identity that was less polished than it advertised. 

Daniel Ward (Gilbert) and Anna Crichlow (Hortense) in rehearsals for Small Island. Image Credit: Pamela Raith Photography.

Ciarán Cunningham’s amazing lighting added another layer of meaning to the production. During the scenes in Jamaica the stage was lit with warm, amber hues that deepened in colour when music played in moments of reminiscence and dreams. This warmth spotlighted the shared determination from migrants travelling to Britain between 1948 and 1971 to create a better life for themselves. On the other hand, Britain was lit with colder shades of blue, purple and white. The warm lamps in Queenie’s apartment reflect her open-minded nature, but  drowned out by the colder shades, Cunningham suggests that even she is ignorant about the West Indies and fails to fully connect with her tenants. 

The play remains a deeply affecting piece of theatre: funny, painful, layered and unafraid to confront Britain’s uncomfortable truths. Xia’s production showcases how racism grows from fear, insecurity and the desperation to hold onto one’s sense of place. It is a reminder that real communities flourish from collaboration rather than exclusion, and the importance of listening to each other. Every equation needs two parts; working alone won’t solve anything. 

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Small Island is performing at Leeds Playhouse until 28th March before moving to Birmingham Rep (1st-18th April) and ending in Nottingham Playhouse (28th April – 16th May). Tickets are still available on Leeds Playhouse website.