![](https://www.sardinesmagazine.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/DTTEDressRehearsal-1.jpg)
Show: DICTATING TO THE ESTATE
Society: Special Events (British Isles & Eire)
Venue: Maxilla Social Club. 2 Maxilla Walk, London W10 6SW
Credits: Written by Nathaniel McBride. Directed by directed by Lisa Goldman and Natasha Langridge. Produced by Special Measures.
Type: Sardines
Author: Andrea Richardson
Performance Date: 01/06/2022
Dictating to the Estate
Andrea Richardson | 02 Jun 2022 13:25pm
Photo: Kevin Percival
Powerful documentary about the Grenfell Tower fire
SPOILER ALERT:Â In this review I will be describing the production and revealing its ending. If you wish to attend this production without prior knowledge of this please do not continue reading.
I was pleased to be invited to attend the premiere of a new play titled Dictating To The Estate at Maxilla Social Club. This play looks at the history of the housing estate where the Grenfell Tower was, and examines the history leading up to the catastrophic fire that killed 72 people on 14 June 2017. Â This year marks the fifth anniversary of the tragedy, and it is poignant that this production takes place in a venue situated in the shadow of the Grenfell Tower which played large part in the community recovery in the aftermath of the fire.
Dictating To The Estate is by Kensington resident Nathaniel McBride, and has been written in consultation with survivors and others directly affected by the fire to ensure its accuracy.
This play isn’t about the fire itself, or the events of that day. Instead it highlights the years prior to the fire when the estate underwent major redevelopment. The content is drawn from the online blog written by people living on the estate who were raising concerns with the council and the group that managed the estate. It also uses emails, reports, meeting minutes and other documents given at the ongoing public enquiry.  It isn’t a play in the traditional sense – more a documentary that presents the facts.
The play opens with statements from residents who witnessed the fire, and quickly turns into a ‘blame game’ as various official bodies try and point fingers at each other as being responsible for the fire.  It then delves into the history of the estate as far back as 2009 when residents raised concerns with the Tenant Management Organisation (TMO) which were routinely ignored. Despite years of protests, petitions, meetings and reviews, little action was taken. One of the principal characters is Edward Daffarn, who wrote the blog detailing the failings of the TMO. Seven months before the fire, he wrote that he believed it would take a huge tragedy and deaths to make them respond.  We end with a witness statement of a survivor who lost 5 members of her family, and finally the names of all 72 victims.
The small cast of 5 certainly have their work cut out as they read the words of nearly 50 different real life people, switching in and out of character. The performance is almost like a dance, with direction more of a choreography to ensure a continuous flow. An actor may leave the performance space as one character and immediately return with a prop or a different walk and a new accent to represent the next character. I was especially struck by the representations of the former MP Eric Pickles and the late David Amess MP, who was murdered in 2021.
This is a powerful production and well worth seeing, even if you have no direct connection to the fire or the local area. It’s an excellent snapshot of the history of Grenfell and highlights a wider context of deregulation and money saving by local authorities that is costing lives.
Extreme respect to the actors for presenting this powerful and emotional piece that must be hard to perform. Congratulations to all involved for a slick and well produced play.
Dictating To The Estate continues at Maxilla Social Club, 2 Maxilla Walk, London W10 6SW until 12Â June 2022.
- : admin
- : 01/06/2022