This play is one person’s view of the events that led to the emergence of India as a nation after many years of being repressed by colonial powers. Salman Rushdie uses the family as a way to express his views and aspirations of what took place over a period of time where one land mass split into three states and brought with it all the troubles and tribulations of their emergence, things that are only resolved over a long period of time with many mistakes and triumphs on the way. Except for the historic bench marks, each person will see it differently.

Now what of this play based on Rushdie’s novel Midnight’s Children? As plays go it is not in the top league. The plot is muddled with far too many characters, played by far too few actors, and it took far too long to tell its story; which many of the audience knew already. A good cut of the script would have helped. As one member of the audience said when leaving the theatre, “I still do not know why the main character had such a large nose”. Now that tells you what sort of story it is. The main character was Saleem Sinai, extremely well played with perfect diction by Zubin Varia, who was switched at birth; now there is an original story! Saleem is one of many children born at midnight on the fourteenth of August, 1947, when it seemed most of the nation had entered a competition which demanded that their offspring be born on the stroke of midnight.

After three hours and ten minutes the audience gave a tired hand clap as the actors took their endurance applause. One or two performances almost got to the surface, but looking at the whole it was a laboured evening for everyone. A pity, for a great play could have come from these historic events. Not what you expect from a Royal Shakespeare Company production. © BA

“Midnight’s Children” is in Leeds from the 13th may until the 17th May, 2003.