The Palace of The End

Canadian playwright Judith Thompson has a real gem on her hands here. This play showcases three monologues all dealing with the Iraq war; bringing us the horror, the suffering and the psychological damage inflicted upon those at the heart of it all.

The script provides the audience with a looking glass into all three very different perspectives on the conflict: a female American soldier about to be court-marshalled for abusing prisoners; a disillusioned UN weapons inspector; and a former Iraqi political activist and mother – all of whom deliver painful yet hopeful speeches. This is hammered home by a superior cast that lends the script a chilling credibility.

The minimal set leaves the cast with a blank canvas, and a large space in which to deliver their expert performances. The show benefits from this sense of space, and the audience is drawn into the performance by being allowed to create many of their own mental images of the tragic unfolding events.

While we are being served story upon violent story from Iraq across the media, there is disconcertingly little being reported on the deeper, human impact of the war. The Palace of The End's great achievement is that it provides us with an idea of how things might be on the ground, behind the news.

As I leave the Traverse Theatre, a cacophony of awestruck whispers follow me out. This is a solemn, but intensely memorable production, and a genuinely important piece of theatre.