Herons

Herons is a play writen by Simon Stephens. It tells the story of a 13 year old boy from an East London estate called Billy, whos dad is a no hoper and gives the surrounding teenagers a reason to bully him. The story is so moving because it is so real. In the small, intimate theatre at The Royal Court there were times i forgot i was sat amongst and audience and actors and actually believed i was witnessing real east London gang life. Herons is filled with swearing and unpleasant language, but Stephens gets away with it, because with out it, it wouldn't have been realistic. I sat with people of all ages, ranging from me at the tender young age 15 and my grandma at 85, yet we all loved the play. We could all appreciate the realism portrayed. towards the end of the play there is a gang rape scene, where a young boy is raped using a beer bottle, it was horrific and moving. I know i will remember the experience of watching Herons for a long time. It provoked thought, debate and deep conversation.