Christopher Walker reviews Speed at the Bush Theatre

By Christopher Walker 

If you have just been sentenced to a speed awareness course, then you should probably look away now.

Because Speed by Mohamed-Zain Dada at the Bush is all about just such a cringe-making session.

Three very different characters a nurse, a delivery driver, and an entrepreneur are assembled in a run-down hotel basement in Birmingham. Each of them has been fined for aggressive driving and threatened with losing their licence unless they attend the course.

They are different but they are all Asian, as is course instructor Abz. Armed with a modicum of psychology and a large dose of cheesy sayings, he presides over what quickly becomes a tumultuous group therapy session. He himself has issues, and Nikesh Patel plays captures his annoying nature well. Not least because so much of what he says is true. 

Indeed, all of the characters in this play are rather annoying. The three attendees are all in denial, and infected with uncontrollable anger that quickly morphs into road rage behind the wheel. After an hour listening to them, I was tempted to ban them all from driving for life.

This dark comedy reunites writer Mohamed-Zain Dada with director Milli Bhatia after their great success with Blue Mist at the Jerwood Theatre Upstairs at the Royal Court.

One of the actors from that production, the very watchable Arian Nik, returns here to play the delivery driver Samir. A mouthy clown who the local police apparently call “Sammy the Rammy”.

Shazia Nicholls is very funny as Faiza, the CEO of Asia Specific an up-and-coming fashion brand, while Sabrina Sandhu plays Harleen, a nurse who is stretched to breaking point. We gradually realize she is probably the most dangerous of them all. 

Race lurks beneath the surface here, though it’s unclear with quite what intent.

For tickets go to https://www.bushtheatre.co.uk/event/speed/#book

Pictured top: Shazia Nicholls (Faiza) in ‘Speed’ at Bush Theatre (Picture: Richard Lakos/ArenaPAL)