Marking the 25th anniversary of Lockerbie, Lockerbie: Lost Voices tells the story of the infamous Pan Am flight 103 and seeks to provide a voice the those who now can’t speak. The story uses three very different couples to illustrate the varying backgrounds of those who were involved in the tragedy. The first is a married couple, the second a mother and daughter and finally a journalist and CIA intelligence agent (based upon the real life passenger Major Charles McKee).
The acting is excellent and the conversations have a very naturalistic tone that pulls the audience into the worlds of the characters. This is crucial as without it you would struggle to feel for them on a personal level when the inevitable occurs. Physical theatre is woven in adding another, more surreal, dimension to the play to great effect. Instead of being out of place it feels rather apt as you are effectively watching dead people walking. The set is basic but effective with six airplane-like seats that are moved around to represent the changing scenes and upturned to illustrate that crash devastation.
If there is a criticism that I could level at this show it is that they focus almost wholly on the idea of the attack being a conspiracy. Whilst this wouldn’t normally be an issue and would be more a style choice, I feel that it detracts a little from the culminating scene of the play as they are constantly criticising the investigation from almost every angle which just feels a little biased.
Whether you believe the message that the play conveys or not, Lockerbie: Lost Voices is an emotive and powerful piece of theatre that deals with a sensitive subject with dignity and poise.
