Scooped is a re-working of Evelyn Waugh’s classic novel, Scoop; the adaptation was directed by Katie Lambert and written in collaboration with her cast. The play shows three journalists creating a story out of nothing, in true tabloid fashion.
The play switches between the journalists discussing what their story should be and the stories they are making up being acted out. The story that the journalists finally agree upon involves a journalist and photographer as central characters. Under the invisible hand of the tabloid press, the journalist and photographer search for a story involving the lives of an eccentric upper-class family of whom there is more than meets the eye. It is these switches between the play’s two settings that make the show pacey and entertaining; they are highly effective.
The physicality of the actors resembles puppets that don’t have strings, which effectively portrays that the journalists are controlled by the tabloid’s demands. This an interesting take on a topical issue and on the true nature of the ‘free’ press. The set, which is made by nothing more than scrunched up newspapers and a makeshift door, could not be more appropriate as it mirrors the distorted nature of tabloid news.
This subject matter does not mean that the show only has a serious tone as it is successfully combined with comedy; the whole cast do an excellent job of making this play hilarious. One exceptional performance stood out: the actor who played both the mother in the eccentric family and the jealous ex-lover of the journalist was highly engaging and her amusing facial expressions stole the show.
Scooped is an entertaining production by a team of young actors and a director who all deserve accolade. The play is highly imaginative and worth watching right the way through.
